Wayward Son
by TTJColeman
Summary: Alcides "Al" Zeddo is a boy that sees things nobody else sees. He has a knack for getting his best friend Percy Jackson out of trouble by acting as the fall guy. When the two are thrust into the world of Gods and Monsters Alcides is forced to get Percy out of the most dangerous situation the boy never got himself into. AU I only own Alcides and some of the plot.
1. Chapter 1

I sit in the passenger seat of my stepfather's 1990 mustang. He just picked me up from school, four hours late, and is currently complaining about it. God he's an asshole. Plus he smells like shit rolled up into a rotten tomato that's been in a bowl of piss and vomit that someone left in Death valley for fifty years. I honestly don't understand why my mom married this disgusting low life. Suddenly there is a loud honk and the car starts to spin out of control. The front of the car hits something causing it to stop rather suddenly. My body is propelled forward into the seatbelt. The worn fabric snaps and I start flying forward.

Instinctively my eyes close as the glass shatters around me when we collide. The shards slice my face and body. I'm airborne now, like a bird of sorts. It's funny I always wanted to fly like a bird. Free from society and its social standards, and now I am. The impact of my body crashing against asphalt brings me back to reality. I flip, twist, roll, and slide on the unforgiving ground till I finally stop, laying on my back.

My body is riddled with pain making it impossible for me to do anything but lay down and suffer. I can't even really breath, the movement hurts to much. Blood gushes down my throat from my nose choking me further. This is it, I'm going to die. Not that it matters to anyone. My mother is dead, my father was never in the picture, and I only have two friends. They might miss me for a while but they'll move on quick, well at least Grover will. I know he thinks I'm a burden and only really hangs out with me because Percy does.

Percy Jackson, my best and only true friend. We've known each other since kindergarten. I stood up to some first grade kids I heard picking on him. They couldn't hit me because I'm blind. It would look bad to the third graders they were trying to impress. From that day on we just looked out for each other, well he did all the looking I mainly listened. We've been with each other through everything so I know this will hurt him. Sorry Perc, I'm just not strong enough to survive this.

Swallowing the blood and bale in my mouth I take one last shallow breath then relax. The wind around me picks up as tears seep from my ducts. Suddenly soft droplets of water start to drench my body. Loud cracks of thunder echo through the air. A jolt of agony and ecstasy fills me then everything goes black.


	2. Chapter 2

My eyes flutter open as the alarm to my right blares loudly. Sitting up I hit the off button then run my hands through my messy hair. Slipping out of bed I stretch out my upper body. I'm sore but that's not really a shocker. My stepfather, Bruce, often uses me as a punching bag when he's drunk. Luckily I've learned how to block out those incidents. Letting my hands fall back to my sides I walk to my door.

It's easy for me to navigate my way to the bathroom. After living here for most of my life I know this house very well. Like usual I piss, brush my teeth, and turn on the hot water. I've always liked taking hot showers, I don't know why I just love heat. Although I don't mind the cold either.

Next I head back to my room and walk to my dresser. Each drawer is designated to one type of clothing. The first contains all six of my black boxer briefs. The second drawer holds my five jeans, two slacks, and three shorts. Dresser number three is filled to the brim with nine shirts and a pair of socks.

Kneeling down I open the the last drawer to pull out a cotton shirt and my socks. All my shirts are either black, white, or blue and completely blank. Mom said that would make it easier for me to dress myself, because those colors go great with jeans. They're all blank because Bruce is to cheep to spring for anything that doesn't come in a Hanes three pack. I grab a pair of jeans and boxers then set them down on the made side of my bed.

Since I'm a static sleeper I don't really mess up my bedding. Mom said I never move around when I sleep, not even when I was a baby. With a smirk I head back to the bathroom and strip before getting under the shower head.

My showers are never really quick but I don't take forever. I wash everything, rinse, and repeat. Turning off the water I step out of the tub and grab my towel. As soon as I enter my room I close the door and thoroughly dry myself off. I pull on my cloths then slip into my only pair of shoes and black classic converse high tops. Finally I slip on my only hoodie. Mama told me it is black with a realistic looking lion head on the front. She also mentioned that the lion is wearing a gold crown tilted on it's head. I've had this hoodie since I was six. Mom got it in a men's medium so I wouldn't have to get a new one for a while. It's the last thing she bought me before she died.

With a sullen sigh I walk to the front door. Reaching down I pick up my massager bag and slip it on my shoulder. I place my hand on the small table the bag was leaning on and grab my keys. After slipping them in my jean pocket I pull my cane out of the umbrella holder. It was a wedding gift from Bruce's brother, Gabe. Since we never got any umbrellas I use it to store my cane.

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

I quickly open the door. The scent of sea salt, pepper mint toothpaste, and Irish spring soap immediately identify the person standing in front of me.

"Hey Percy." I greet as I walk into the hall.

"How do you do that?"

A grayish sea foam blue person shaped mist appears as he speaks then vanishes when he stops. I smirk then close the door.

"I can smell you." I chuckle as I lock it.

"That's kinda cool and weird at the same time."

We both laugh as something creeks behind him. My eyes move to examinant the noise and find a gray mist shaped like a hinge. As the door slams shut it to becomes visible in the form of a gray mist.

"Hi Al. Ready to go?" Percy's mom asks.

I know it's her by the sweet scent. I swear when I'm around Mrs. Jackson I feel like I'm in a candy shop.

"Yes Sally."

"Great. Come on boys, lets get you to school."

Percy takes my free hand and signs " _Lame_." In my palm. I suppress my laughter, as I know his mother wouldn't approve of our feelings toward school.

"Well at least we have a field trip today." I remind under my breath.

" _Oh joy_." He signs.

Percy and I sort of have a bad rep when it comes to field trips. Though he's the one that usually causes the issue, I just cover for him. The teachers always forgive my "blind clumsiness" the assholes. I hope this trip is different though cause I'm one issue away from being put on the do not take list.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"I'm going to kill her." Percy mutters.

I let Grover handle him this time, as I don't really know what's going on. Sometimes I have a tendency to get lost in all the gray shapes I see while traveling. It's really nice against the black vortex of emptiness that I see when it's quiet. Also I don't really like Grover.

He treats me like I'm a burden to him. It's like I'm his own personal form of herpes. He constantly tries to get rid of me by attempting to, "inconspicuously", end my friendship with Percy. However, like herpes, I never leave for to long.

Suddenly we stop and Mr. Brunner announces that we've reached our destination.

"Stick close to me Al." Percy says.

I nod then take his hand so we don't get separated. He leads me off of the bus then lets my hand go. I know his want for me to stay near him has more to do with me being a scapegoat than for my own protection. We both know I don't need protection.

No one in the school bullies me because the teachers are constantly watching me. All of this goes back to the fact that I'm blind. Everyone thinks I need special treatment, everyone except Percy. He knows I'm independent and I have amazing senses. Honestly I could walk around New York in the middle of the night without a single incident. I can take all the bullies at our school and I can easily ditch the teachers that follow. But if I do that then Percy would get into way more trouble than he usually does. So I play that role, the role I absolutely despise. Pathetic blind leech, I mean helpless blind friend.

As we enter the building I notice there's an echo, which is great. The loud commotion and the echo of the room allows me to see all sorts of shapes. To most misty gray shapes probably aren't as cool as the actual image, but it's good enough for me.

My eyes roam the room and examine all the shapes and their sizes.

"WILL YOU SHUT UP!" Percy yells at someone.

It was most likely Nancy Bobofit. Percy hates her and, from what I can tell the contempt is mutual. Everyone around us laughs while I retake Percy's hand. If I make it seem like he's guiding me Mrs. Dodds can't send him out. He may not want to admit it but Percy loves this Greek stuff. If he was forced to miss out on it he'd be really upset.

"Mr. Jackson do you have a comment?" Mr. Brunner asks.

"No Sir." The boy replies.

"Perhaps you'll tell us what this picture represents?" He offers.

"That's Kronos eating his kids right?" Percy pipes confidentiality.

"Yes." The teacher replies in an unsatisfied tone.

Percy doesn't seem to be picking up on his dissatisfaction.

"And he did this because?" He adds.

"Well..."

" _He was king and he didn't want his kids dethroning him._ " I sign in his hand.

"Umm. Kronos was the king god-"

"God?" Mr. Brunner questions.

" _Titan_."

"I mean Titans." He corrects "And ... he didn't trust his kids, who were the gods. So, um, Kronos ate them, right?"

" _Yes. But his wife hid Zeus and fed him a rock."_

"But his wife hid baby Zeus, and gave Kronos a rock to eat instead." Percy adds.

" _When Zeus grew up he was able to trick Kronos into throwing up his siblings."_

"And later, when Zeus grew up, he tricked his dad, Kronos, into barfing up his brothers and sisters."

"Eeew!" Says one of the girls behind us.

" _The gods battled the Titans for power and won."_

 _"_ So there was this big fight between the gods and the Titans, and the gods won." He finishes.

A few members of the group snicker.

"Like we're going to use this in real life. Like it's going to say on our job applications, 'Please explain why Kronos ate his kids.'" Nancy mutters.

"And why, Mr. Jackson, to paraphrase Miss Bobofit's excellent question, does this matter in real life?" Mr. Brunner asks.

"Busted," Grover mutters.

"Shut up," Nancy hisses.

 _"Our history is the map to our future."_

"Our history is the map to our future?" Percy repeats.

"What an intriguing thing to say. Please elaborate."

"Well..."

 _"Stories from our past teaches us lessons to better our future. For instance we learn about the Holocaust and how it happened to prevent it from happening again."_

"Our past teaches us lessons to better our future so the bad stuff doesn't happen again, like the Holocaust."

"So what lesson does this story teach?" Nancy asks snidely.

 _"Don't miss treat you children, or they will be your downfall."_

"Karma's a bitch."

The entire group laughs as do I. Percy always has been good at dumbing down my words.

"Well, Mr. Jackson, that was quite insightful. Full credit." The man praises.

"Yes. Zeus did indeed feed Kronos a mixture of mustard and wine, which made him disgorge his other five children, who, of course, being immortal gods, had been living and growing up completely undigested in the Titan's stomach. The gods defeated their father, sliced him to pieces with his own scythe, and scattered his remains in Tartarus, the darkest part of the Underworld."

He pauses for a moment to let his words sink in.

"On that happy note, it's time for lunch. Mrs. Dodds, would you lead us back outside?" He finishes.

"Do you have anything to eat for lunch?" Percy asks.

I shake my head.

"Good cause my mom packed you a lunch, just in case."

He lets go of my hand then starts rummage through his bag.

"Here."

He presses the bag against my chest. I place my hand under it then smile.

"Thanks Percy."

"Don't thank me. Thank my mom."

I nod then pull him into a tight hug.

"Faggots!" Nancy says as she slams her shoulder into my back.

Percy tightens his grip around me so I won't fall.

"Hey watch it!" Percy yells as he lets me go.

I quickly take his hand and squeeze it. It really effects Percy when people call him that. I think it's cause he's in the closet.

"Do you even know what that word means you klepto bitch!" He asks.

"Two homo freaks." She replies.

Percy tries to step forward but I pull him back.

"Actually when witches were being burned so were gays. At that time gays were considered beneath even witches so they didn't get to be burned on posts. They were just thrown in with the kindling, or how it was commonly known as then, faggot." I explain.

"Whatever." She growls as she storms off.

"I fuckin hate that stupid bitch." He growls.

"Come on man, lets go eat." Grover finally pipes.

His mist looks odd to me. Percy says he's got some type of muscular issue in his legs but that's not what it looks like to me. To me it looks like he has goat legs.

"Come on Al." Percy prompts.

I follow him and Grover outside. There's a lot of noise out here. Girls are chattering, boys are goofing around, cars are whizzing by, people are yelling, god there's just so much noise. I absolutely love it. Grover and Percy sit down so I follow suit.

"I fuckin hate that bitch." Percy growls.

"Don't let her get to you Percy. She only bullies people because she's insecure and needs to be mean to feel good about herself." I soothe.

"Yeah, you're probably right. She's an insecure klepto bitch."

I chuckle at the last part then nod. Setting my cane down on my lap I open up the lunch bag and reach in. The first item I pull out is a sandwich. As I unwrap it I hear footsteps approaching us. There's a soft splat sound and Grover groans.

"Oops." Nancy says.

With a sigh I slip the sandwich back in the paper bag then put that bag in my school bag. Again I grab Percy's hand as I grip the handle of my cane. This could get ugly so I should prepare to get Percy away from her. Suddenly there's a loud splash. Turning slightly I find a gray female figure sitting in a lighter gray mist that is rippling like waves. Hmmm someone must have pushed a girl in the water.

"Percy pushed me!" Nancy screams.

No he didn't, he couldn't have, he hasn't moved at all.

Some of the kids start whispering: "Did you see—"

"—the water—"

"—like it grabbed her—"

That's so weird, water doesn't just reach up and grab people. Whatever. That doesn't matter right now. What matters is that Percy is in trouble again and he needs me to bail him out.

"Now, honey—" Mrs. Dodds starts.

"I know," Percy grumbles. "A month erasing workbooks."

"Come with me," Mrs. Dodd's orders.

"Wait!" Grover yelps. "It was me. I pushed her."

I can't believe he is trying to cover for Percy. Mrs. Dodds scares Grover to death. Hell she scares me to, but I'm not scared of her attitude. I'm scared of her bat like wings, razor sharp claws, mouth full of fangs, and glowing red eyes. A cold shudder runs through me.

"I don't think so, Mr. Underwood," she hisses

"But—" The boy tries.

"You—will—stay—here." She orders.

"It's okay, man," Percy tells him.

"Thanks for trying." He adds.

"Honey now." She barks.

He lets go of my hand and follows her away. I never feel comfortable leaving Percy alone with her so, like usual, I follow them. As we walk all the gray shapes disappear. We must be somewhere quite, away from everyone else. Luckily the sound of their footsteps allows me to track them.

"You've been giving us problems, honey," she says as she stops.

"Yes, ma'am." He replies submissively.

I gingerly inch closer to them. Tapping my cane around I note that I'm on the other side of a wall. Feeling around I find no door but there is a portion of the wall that is missing. Stealthily I sneak into the room and stand in the corner behind Percy.

"Did you really think you would get away with it?" She growls.

"Ummm...I'll—I'll try harder, ma'am."

Thunder shakes the building.

"We are not fools, Percy Jackson," Mrs. Dodds bellows. "It was only a matter of time before we found you out. Confess, and you will suffer less pain."

What the fuck does she mean by that. There's no way I'm going to let her hurt my best friend. Grabbing the leather body of my cane I slowly pull it down. This cane wasn't originally built to be used by the blind. It is a walking cane with a very detailed silver skull head handle. Mom got the end of it modified so the tip is pointed and made of stainless steel, so it makes noise when it hits thing. Everyone thinks it's cool. What no one knows is there is a 15 1/2 inch stainless steel blade attached to the handle.

"Well?" she demands.

"Ma'am, I don't..."

"Your time is up," she hisses.

"Whoo!" Percy yells.

As she lunges at him I unsheathe my sword then pull Percy out of the way.

"What ho, Percy!" Mr. Brunner calls behind us.

I pay him no mind as she spins around so she's facing us.

"Die, honey!" She snarls.

As she fly's towards us I move in front of him. I raise the weapon and quickly swing it. The metal blade hit her shoulder and passes clean through her body as if she were made of water. Hisss!

She explodes into bright yellow powder, vaporized on the spot, leaving nothing but the smell of sulfur, a dying screech, and a chill of evil in the air. It's almost as if those two glowing red eyes were still watching us.

"Holy shit Al! You killed Mrs. Dobbs." Percy yells.

"Was she human?" I ask while putting the blade back into the leather sheethe.

"Defiantly not. Hey Al how did you know where she was?" Percy asks.

"Remember when we watched, well you watched, that Daredevil movie?" I ask.

"Yeah."

"Do you remember how his vision works?"

"Yeah he uses echolocation to see what's around him. So he sees sound waves that take the shape of whatever made the sounds."

"Yeah that's how my vision works. When it's quiet everything is black. But when I hear a sound whatever produced it becomes visible to me in the form of a gray mist. Well except for you, Mrs. Dobbs, and Grover's legs."

"What did Mrs. Dobbs look like to you?"

"She looked like a hag mist with long claws, bat like wings, and fangs."

"What do I look like?"

"A grayish sea foam blue person shaped mist."

"Grover?"

"His upper half looks like a normal human shaped tan mist. But his lower half is light brown and look like goat legs."

Percy laughs then suddenly stops.

"Where's Mr. Brunner?" He asks.

"I don't know. I herd him yell to you but that's about it."

"Yeah he threw a pen at me. When I caught it it turned into a sword. Before I could use it you killed her."

"Is it still a sword?" I ask.

"No it's a pen again."

"That sucks."

"Yeah. Come on, we need to head back." He prompts.

With a nod I follow him out the room.

"So where are we anyway?"

"The Roman and Greek section." Percy replies.

"Oh cool."

"Hey do you wanna have a sleep over tonight." He questions.

"Sure."

When we get back outside I'm hit by soft yet cool droplets of rain.

"I hope Mrs. Kerr whipped your butt." Nancy hisses at us.

"Who?" We ask simultaneously.

"Our teacher. Duh!" she replies.

"Who are you talking about?" I ask.

The girl scoffs then snaps her fingers and walks away.

"Who the fuck is Mrs. Kerr?" Percy asks me.

"No fuckin clue, dude."

We walk back to our original seat. Percy starts asking Grover questions but I don't really care, I just wanna eat right now. As I pull my sandwich out I hear Percy stand up.

"Percy's acting weird isn't he?" Grover asks.

I nod, not knowing what else to say.

"I guess Mrs. Kerr really gave it to him."

"Who the fuck is Mrs. Kerr?" I ask just before I bite into the sandwich.

Mmmm peanut butter, fluff, and and strawberry jelly my favorite.

"Our Algebra teacher." The boy states.

"Since when?"

"Since Mrs. Hanover had a nervous breakdown."

"No Mrs Dobbs replaced Mrs. Hanover."

"Who's Mrs. Dobbs?"

I look in his direction then shake my head.

"Never mind." I grumble as I go back to eating my sandwich.


	3. Chapter 3

In the months that followed the Mrs. Dobbs incident I've noticed some strange things.

For some reason no one seems to remember Mrs. Dobbs. Percy thinks it's an elaborate prank. However I'm not sure that's the case. Personally I think it had to do with that rain. It tasted weird to me and I find it odd that no one went inside, especially the girls. They usually flip out when the rain starts to fall. This time they just stood there getting drenched like it meant nothing.

Another weird thing is Grover has been being rather friendly towards me lately. He talks to me way more than he used to and even sits next to me rather than just next to Percy. Though that could be because Percy's been acting like a jerk lately. Well actually I wouldn't go as far as that he's just been really short tempered lately. He's been getting into more fights with Nancy Bobofit and her friends. He was sent out into the hallway in almost every class. Even our Latin class, which is weird cause he actually likes Latin.

Something else that's odd, Bruce hasn't been home at all. I'm not complaining, cause I'm better off without him around, it's just an observation. Kinda like Percy's observations of the bad weather lately.

The loud ring of the last bell pulls me out of my thoughts. I slip my bag back over my shoulder then head to the main entrance. As I walk through the hall I remember I have to ask Mr. Brunner about my final. He's been trying to get me to learn Latin in braille. I've been doing really so he started giving me papers in Latin braille, which is fine. I just don't want to take my final in Latin braille. Turning around I head back to his class room, on the other side of the school. Everything goes blank around me, save for the pulses of grey that appear when my cane hits the floor. Suddenly there's something else.

To my left there are faint shadows. One is Grover, I can tell by the color and shape of his legs. In front of him is a taller man but...the only reason he seems taller is because his a horse from the waits down. Stopping in the center of the hall I listen as hard as I can.

"He still remembers her sir." Grover says anxiously.

"Of course Percy remembers you know what his father is."

That's Mr. Brunner's voice.

"Not Percy Al."

"The blind boy Percy hangs out with?" The teacher asks.

Well that's not a hit to the ego. I'm one of his best students and he only knows me as Percy's blind friend.

"Yeah. He remembers everything but it's not just that. When I asked Percy to tell me what he thought happened at the museum he told me Al defeated Mrs. Dobbs."

"That's impossible. I mean yeah he was there but he's blind, there's no way he could have seen her?"

I'm starting to like Mr. Brunner less every time he speaks.

"Well, I've noticed that he seems to always know his surroundings and who is near him. I once heard Percy refer to him as daredevil. So maybe he uses some type of echolocation, like a bat."

A better term for it would be echo-mist-vision, but echolocation is fairly accurate I guess.

"What do you know about his parents?"

"Not much. Percy told me that his mom died when he was seven. And, as far as I know, his dad was never in the picture."

"Hmmm...that sounds like a vaguely familiar story."

"Do you think he's a Kindly One, like Percy?" The boy asks.

Percy's a what now?

"Maybe. I'll do some digging, see if any of the higher ups claim him."

A hand touches my shoulder causing me to jump.

"Hey dude come on, mom's waiting in the packing lot." Percy says.

I smile at him then nod. He wraps his arm around my shoulder then ruffles my hair.

"Hey wanna spend the night tonight?" He asks while leading me to the entrance.

I nod with a fake smile.

"What's up bro?" He asks.

"I'll tell you later." I Lie.

If I tell Percy what I heard he might just flip his out, again.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I can sleep. All I can think about is Grover and Mr. Brunner's conversation. Eventually I woke Percy up and told him about the conversation. As I expected he was upset.

"What do they mean, "like me"? And who are the higher ups?" He asks.

"I don't know man. All I know is they're looking into me, it's kinda freaking me out."

"Relax man, we'll worry about that later. Just go to sleep and focus on our exams. We only have one more day left. So just close your eyes and go to sleep." Percy advises with a yawn.

Nodding I close my eyes and try to relax. My mama always told me to close my eyes before I go to sleep. I don't really understand why. The darkness in my life does not hinder me from sleeping with my eyes open; nor does it leave when I close them. Black is all I see in silence and in dreams.

As I lay here I start to feel that familiar airy feeling, like I'm floating. Along with it come a flurry of tingles that lead to a blissful numbness. Soon the numbness is replaced by the feel of grass on my bare calves. I can hear rushing water near by as well as the soft hums of a woman. This isn't an uncommon dream. Sometimes the woman isn't here, sometimes she's arguing with a man, and sometimes he's here alone grumbling angrily.

Suddenly the humming stops and there is rustling not to far from me.

"Who the hell are you and why are you in my garden?" A soft yet raspy voice asks.

"I don't know I just sleep here...well I end up here when I sleep." I explain.

"Really? How long have you been doing this?" She asks.

"Ever since I was six." I admit.

"Why are you not looking me in the eyes?" She asks.

"I can't see your eyes." I reply.

She steps forward.

"Stand up boy." She orders.

I stand and turn in the direction of her voice. She roughly grabs my chin and tilts my head back.

"You are blind?"

I nod with wide eyes. She roughly squeezes my chin.

"Speak when spoken to boy." She orders in a motherly way.

"Yes ma'am, I am blind." I stammer.

Her appearance is absolutely memorizing, I've never seen anything like it before. As she speaks peacock feathers appear in the shape a tall curvy female frame.

"Wow." I gasp.

"What?"

"Well when people speak or make a noise I see them as a gray mist. But you...you look like a bunch of beautiful peacock feathers in the shape of a woman. It's beautiful."

"That is a rather interesting talent...what is your name?"

"Al." I reply.

"Al..."

"Alcides ma'am. Alcides Ludovic Zeddo." I elaborate.

"Ludovic? I've never heard that name before."

"It's Canadian."

"So you are from Canada?"

I shake my head and rely, "No. My grandma was though, Ludovic was her maiden name. My grandpa was from Barbados, I have his last name. I was born in New Orleans. But I currently live in New York."

"Interesting. Tell me more about our grandparents."

"I don't know much, they both died before I was born. All I know is they met in New Orleans where they got married and had my mom."

"Do you know how they died?"

"No ma'am."

"What about your father?" She asks.

"I don't have a father."

"Everyone has a father."

"I don't. I have a deadbeat sperm donor and an evil guardian."

Before she can say anything I feel my body start to shake.

" _Alcides."_

I smile at the woman then wave.

"Goodbye." I say.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

My eyes open as I sit up.

"Come on Bro you gotta get ready for school." Percy says.

I nod while pulling the covers off of myself. Percy hands me my cane as I stand.

"Thanks man."

I walk back to my home and start to get ready for school. When I finish I head out the door where Percy and his mom are waiting.

"You ready for our finals?" I ask

"Nope."

We laugh and follow his mom out of the building.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Exams were rather easy and all in English braille. The fact that I get to take them all in the Library helps. When I take tests alone it takes alot of pressure off of me. I don't feel like I have to rush to finish. Also there's to much noise to in class room, it gets distracting. I told the principal and he let me take my tests in here. The librarians watch me but they never say anything. They just walk over and gather my tests once they see that I'm finished.

As heels click towards me I pull my IPod Shuffle and headphones out of my pocket. The woman takes the papers while I slip my ear buds into my ears. Resting my head on the table I hit the play button then just listen.

ㇸ6 _Where is your little son lost, John_

 _Tears, John_

 _Tears, John_

 _Bruised in the rain_

 _With his overalls torn_

 _With one shoe off_

 _One shoe on_

Hmmm I don't remember downloading this song.

ㇸ6 _Tears, John_

 _Tears, John_

The tempo is slow and dreary.

ㇸ6 _Where will your little son sleep, John_

 _Under the smoke stacks_

 _Under the heap_

 _Under the tent where the canopy leaks_

My eyelids start to droop as a sense of fatigue sets in.

ㇸ6 _Tears, John_

 _Tears, John_

With a yawn I stretch my arms over my head while arching my back.

ㇸ6 _You're drowning in the grief_

 _Of Jupiter's water_

 _Let me open my teeth_

 _And cradle you there_

 _There's a bed for the boy_

 _And rope for the father_

 _Both orphaned by Heaven_

 _Where no child is spared_

Picking up my bag I set it on the table in front of me. I open the bag and pull out my finals pillow. This isn't the first time I've fallen asleep during finals and after that first time I realized I needed a pillow.

ㇸ6 _To who will your little son pray, John_

 _Dark are the strangers_

 _That sleep on the train_

 _There's blood on their cots_

 _And bones on their plates_

Reaching back into the bag I pull out a cozy fleece blanket. The librarians keep the AC on around this time. It gets freezing cold in here after a while.

ㇸ6 _Tears, John_

 _Tears, John_

I close my bag then set it down under the table.

ㇸ6 _Who, then, will tend to the sheep, John_

 _My treads in the place_

 _Where the vicious gods preach_

 _Where claws come in sharp_

 _And on wolves in white fleece_

After fluffing the pillow I stand up place it in the corner where two big bookshelves meet.

ㇸ6 _Tears, John_

 _Tears, John_

I lay down then flip the blanket over myself.

ㇸ6 _Tears, John_

 _Tears, John_

Turning on to my side I grip my cane and hold it to my chest. Closing my eyes I turn on the repeat setting and let the song lull me to sleep.

ㇸ6 _You're drowning in the grief_

 _Of Jupiter's water_

 _Let me open my teeth_

 _And cradle you there_

 _There's a bed for the boy_

 _And rope for the father_

 _Both orphaned by Heaven_

 _Where no child is spared_

 _Swing from my limb_

 _Render your tears_

 _The more that you shed_

 _The deeper it is_

 _Two little hands_

 _Push the chair from your feet_

 _Drown in your beautiful grief._

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

A hand grabs my shoulder and violently shakes me. My body immediately goes into defense mode. I sit up and swing my cane around catching the person. As I hop up I pull out my headphones.

"Speak!" I order.

"Chill out Al, it's just Grover." Percy chuckles.

"Y-yeah." He stammers.

"Told you not to shake him like that." The sea foam mist states.

I give Grover a sad smile and say a quick sorry while hold out my hand.

"Nah man it's cool. I shouldn't have startled you like that." He says as he takes my hand.

I pull him up right then pat him on the shoulder.

"So are exams over?" I ask.

"Yeah but mom's not picking us up. Apparently Gabe got trashed in New Jersey and needs her to pick him up."

"So how are we getting home?"

"Well she came to the school during my second exam and dropped off some money. So we can take the greyhound bus."

"Yeah and I'm gunna tag along cause I'm going to Manhattan to." Grover pipes.

"Cool. Let me just gather my stuff."

I grab my bag then stuff the pillow and blanket back inside it.

"Ok lets go." I prompt as I sling the bag over my shoulder.

Percy chuckles then slaps my back as we walk.

"So Grover why are you going to Manhattan?" I asks.

"Oh I'm going to meet up with my Aunt before I go to camp."

"Cool what camp do you go to?" I inquire.

"It's a private camp in Long Island." He says.

"What's it called?" Percy asks.

"Camp ummmm...uh... Crystal Lake? Yeah that's it Camp Crystal Lake."

Percy scoffs but doesn't call bullshit.

"So Al you got any food at your place?" He asks instead.

"No. Bruce hasn't been home in awhile so I haven't gotten a chance to take his EBT card."

"Alright so we'll hit up the grocery store on our way."

I nod and a easy silence falls over us. When we get to the bus stop it's already there so we board. Percy paid for my ticket then lead me to a seat in the back. He takes the window seat and Grover sits one seat away from him leaving me in the middle. Grover keeps shifting around uneasily, as if he's waiting for something to happen. I place my hand on his thigh then look at him.

"Relax dude everything's gonna be alright." I sooth.

Placing my hand back in my lap I rest my head back against my seat.

"Looking for Kindly Ones?" Percy asks.

Grover nearly jumps out of his seat. "Wha-what do you mean?"

With a sigh I explain, "I heard you and Mr. Brunner talking yesterday."

"How much did you hear?" He asks.

"Not much." I respond.

"What's the Summer deadline?" Percy asks.

"Where did you-"

"I heard you talking to Mr. Brunner about it this afternoon. You two aren't really good at picking moments to talk about your secrets." Percy says.

"Look, Percy ... I was just worried for you, see? I mean, hallucinating about demon math teachers ... "

"Grover-"

"And I was telling Mr. Brunner that maybe you were overstressed or something, because there was no such person as Mrs. Dodds, and ... "

"Grover, you're a really, really bad liar."

I chuckle softly at Percy's words.

"Just take this, okay? In case you need me this summer."

"What's Half-"

"Don't say it aloud!" Grover yelps.

"That's my, um ... Sum-mer address." He continues.

"Okay," Percy says glumly.

"So, like, if we want to come visit your mansion."

"Or ... Or if you need me. " Grover states.

"Why would I need you?"

Percy's words came out so harsh I flinched.

"Look, Percy, the truth is, I-I kind of have to protect you. The both of you actually."

I scoff at that.

"What exactly are you protecting us from?" I ask.

Suddenly the bus is filled with the smell of rotten eggs as it sputters to a halt. Knowing something is wrong I immediately stand and start walking to the exit.

"Come on Al, lets stand over here." Percy says as he takes my hand.

I let him lead me to the side of the road. For some reason my eyes travel across the street. In a seated position are three women. The weird thing about them is I can actually see them. Their wrinkled pale peach skin, long silver hair held back by something, and stoic faces. It's been six years since I've actually seen a person and that makes me nervous. Involuntarily I squeeze Percy's hand as well as my cane.

"Is something wrong?" He asks quietly.

I nod, never taking my eyes off the women.

" _I can see them, those three women across the way."_ I sign in his palm.

 _"What do you mean?"_

 _"I see them the same way you do, for the most part. It's rather unnerving."_

Suddenly their black eyes are on me. What really freaks me out is that there eyes are completely black. There are no whites and no ring for the iris just black.

 _"What are they doing?"_ I ask.

 _"The two on the end are knitting an electric blue sock while the one in the middle holds the yarn."_

Looking down I see the sweater sized socks.

"Tell me they're not looking at you. They are, aren't they?" Grover stammers.

"Yeah. Weird, huh? You think those socks would fit me?" Percy jokes

"Not funny, Percy. Not funny at all."

The old lady in the middle takes out a huge pair of gold and silver long-bladed, shear like, scissors. My heart beat quickens slightly as I lock eyes with her. I hear Grover's breath catch beside me.

"We're getting on the bus, come on." He orders.

"What? Why? It's a thousand degrees in there." Percy protests.

I continue to watch as the woman cuts the string. The resounding snap is so loud I can see a mist of everything for miles.

"Come on Al, if I have to suffer than so you." Percy says as he pulls me into the bus.

He leads me back to our seat just as the bus roars back to life. With a sigh I lean my head against the cushy seat and close my eyes.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

My eyes shoot open as stubby nails dig into my palm.

 _"We have to go now!"_

The hand tugs me forward so I stand up and follow it off the bus. Suddenly we're running fast and hard. We keep up this pace for a while till finally Percy stops.

"Why...are...we running?" I ask breathlessly.

"We had to ditch Grover." He huffs.

"Ok. Can we get some food now, I'm hungry?"

"Yeah. There's a burger king not to far from here. Come on." He states.

I nod and we start walking in silence.

When we finally reach the food place I ask, "So why did we ditch Grover?"

"He was being weird, I don't trust him anymore." He says as we enter the chatter filled shop.

Just as I start to reply my cane hits something.

"Ow!" A deep voice booms.

All the conversation stops and Percy tenses up beside me.

"Hay watch where you're going." A man, growls.

"Sorry Sir." I reply politely.

"Didn't your parents ever teach you to look at someone when they're talking to you." He hisses.

"I'm a blind orphan. So no, no one has or would ever teach me such a futile gesture of respect."

The people around us start to whisper.

"Oh...Well can't he help you?" The man questions accusingly.

"A dyslexic twelve year old with ADHD? I think not but he's the only friend I have."

I can hear the people's frustration growing and it's all aimed at the man in front of us. Sensing this he stops speaking.

"Here Al take this." Percy says.

He slips some balled up napkins into my hand then guides it to my left cheek. Sometimes whenever I mention my mom tears escape their ducts, even if I'm not crying. I bow my head in shame, I really hate tearing up in public.

Percy pats my shoulder then says, "Don't cry buddy, that guy's just a jerk."

The way he says it immediately alerts me to the con. It's one I run often when I need food, because my Bruce doesn't care about my well being. All I have to do is get someone to yell at me then I tell them I'm a blind orphan and lay on the water works. I don't like doing it but it's gotten me free grub plenty of times. So I start to sob, silently enough so that people think I'm trying to hide it, and hold my cane close to my side. Percy takes my hand and we gingerly walk forward.

Suddenly a hand pats me on the shoulder.

"Here you go kids, on me." A softer male voice says.

"Thanks." Percy says as he opens my bag.

"What is it?" I ask curiously.

"Two whopper meals with an apple pie each and two large strawberry milkshakes." The man reply's.

As he speaks I notice something odd about him, his body is made up of a bluish-black flame with a black shadow around it. His presence doesn't alarm me. In fact I feel a connection to him.

"Thank you sir." I say as Percy slips the food bags into my messenger bag then takes my hand.

"Do you boys need anything else?" He asks.

"We could use a ride home." I pipe.

"Alright, I'll hail you boys a cab." He says.

 _"Nice."_ Percy signs.

I nod with a slight chuckle as he pulls me outside.

"Here you kids go. I gave the driver a fifty so you boys should be covered." The man says.

"Thank you so much sir." I say.

"It's no problem."

I slide into the vehicle and slide over to the other side. Percy slides in beside me.

"East One-hundred-and-fourth and First, " He says as he hands me my milkshake.

The ride is quiet and short so the silence isn't uncomfortable. When we stop Percy gives me a light nudge, telling me the sidewalk is on my side. So I open my door and slide out of the cab.

"Thank you." Percy says as he climbs out.

He shuts the door then pats my back.

"You are an excellent con-man my friend." He praises.

"Thanks man, I try."

We both laugh then start heading upstairs.

"You got the key to your place?" Percy asks.

I nod then pull out my keys as we stop.

"Hurry up and unlock the door I have to pee." He prompts.

With a chuckle I quickly slip the key in the lock, twist it, and open the door. He rushes inside causing me to laugh. I close and lock the door behind me. After setting my keys down on small table and putting my cane in the umbrella holder I walk over to the couch. Opening my bag I pull out the two bags of food and place them on the coffee table. Next I take off my bag and slide it under the table.

"Man your house smells nice, when was the last time your Stepdad was home?" Percy asks as he flops down beside me.

I shrug then grab one of the bags and pull out a few fries.

"Hmm. Must have been a while cause Bruce smells way worse than Gabe."

"Yeah. That's probably because he passes out in his throw up more than he showers."

Percy laughs with me at the truthful word. The TV clicks on followed by an offensive joke. The quirky laugh at the end of the joke tells me we're watching Family Guy. I don't laugh as much as Percy but that's mainly because I'm busy stuffing my face.

When I finish I gather up my trash and put it in the garbage can.

"Hey I'm going to take a quick shower." I inform.

"Alright man I'll be here."

Nodding I walk to the bathroom and strip. I turn on the hot water then pull back the curtain and step into the tub. Stepping under the water I just stand there as it rolls over me. After a minute or two I reach forward so I can grab my lufa and soap. For some reason I wash slower today. Right now I just want to be under the hot water. I just want to feel it for a little while.

When my skin starts to prune I turn off the water and step out of the tub. Grabbing my towel I wrap it around my waist then head to my room. I dry off then put on a pair of loose boxers and a long sleeved t-shirt that's a size to big. Suddenly there's a knock on the door.

"I got it Al!" Percy calls.

I quickly walk out my room to see what's going on.

"Hello son. Are you Al-?"

"That's me." I announce as I approach.

"Hi son-"

"I'm not your son so don't call me that." I growl.

I absolutely hate it when men call me son. Honestly I don't know why it just ticks me off. Maybe it's because I resent my father for never being around. Especially every time Bruce would beat the me.

"Ok. Well I came here to tell you that your stepfather, Bruce Zachary Ugliano, Is dead. I'm sorry." He says.

I know I should feel sad but I don't.

"Umm. We found these items on his person. Here you go."

I hold out my hand allowing him to place the items in my palm one at a time. The first is a cord necklace with a smooth skull, which has no bottom jaw, pendant. In the center of it's head is an tear shaped gem. I remember it from when I was younger. The skull is black and the gem is a sapphire. Mama told me it belonged to granddaddy before he died. Said it was rightfully mine but after she died Bruce stole it from. I quickly slip it around my neck then hold out my hand again.

Next is a titanium sun ring. The sun was painted with liquid gold so it looks separate from the rest of the ring. It was my great grandma's, a gift from my great grandpa to show his love, before she gave it to my grandma. After my grandma died mom took it.

These two items are the only connection I have to my grandparents. Yeah I have my grandpa's cane but that reminds me more of my mom and her bravery than him.

Tears roll down my cheeks as I imagine what my life would be like if they all lived. Mom always said her parents were the kindest people on earth. Maybe they could have talked her out of marring Bruce. Maybe they would have taken me in after her accident...an accident that was all my fault. I killed my own mother.

My legs buckle then giveaway as anguish fills me. Strong arms wrap around me and guide me to the floor.

"What's going on here?" Sally asks.

"Ma'am do you know this boy?" The officer holding me asks while rubbing my back.

His gravely voice is kind and his actions are rather soothing. In fact I'm kinda starting to feel warm and sleepy.

"H-He's my nepfew sorted." Gabe slurs like a drunk idiot.

"Please tell me what happened." Sally begs.

I can feel her hands stroking my hair while the officer explains the situation.

"We had to inform him that his father, Bruce Ugliano, is died. Poor kid broke down after I gave him the items we found."

"Oh my gosh, Al I'm so sorry." Sally says.

I wanna tell her not to be, that my tears have nothing to do with that low life, but my throat is to tight and I'm to tired.

"Do you think you can come to the station and fill out some custody papers, we'd hate to separate him from family." A new male voice says.

"Sally will." Gabe states.

"Of course I will, he's already like a son to me. Percy take Al to his roo-"

"No need ma'am I've got him." The officer holding says before lifting me up.

He carries me to my room then places me under my covers and tucks me in. His cool and callous hand brushes my hair away from my forehead.

"Do not worry dear child I'll look out for you." He says.

Reaching down he lifts my left wrist then puts, what feels like, a leather cuff on it. He repeats this action with my right hand.

"My boy after tomorrow you will never feel alone again."

His cold chapped lips press against my forehead as I start to doze off.


	4. Chapter 4

My eyes open slowly as my alarm blares. With a sigh I sit up and hit the off button before fling the covers off of myself. To my shock I see long, skinny, sallow legs and feet. Looking at my lap I see a thick black mist wrapped around me. Reaching down I touch the mist, it's my boxers. Suddenly I notice black leather cuffs on both of my wrists. There's a stainless steel symbol that looks like an upside down cross with a U attached to the bottom. In the center of the U is a filled in dot. On either side of the symbol is another, smaller one. This one looks like a P and L combined.

The symbols start to separate and move around; spelling out the word Pluto. Hmmm that's odd. This whole situation is odd. Jumping out of bed I rush to the vanity I haven't used in six years. The mirror is completely black but in it I can see a face.

It's gaunt with a sickly sallow color. The tinted blue eyes seem hollow yet sparkle with electric waves of life. Maybe it's the high cheekbones and bags that make them seem so hollow. The full pale lips are dry and cracking so a pink tongue peaks out to wet them. This action causes the frail skin to stretch over the square jaw as it lowers. Below said jaw line is a long thick neck.

My gaze falls to broad shoulders and a thin torso covered by a black mist. Reaching down I quick pull off my shirt then drop it on the floor. It's not to surprising that my abs and obliques seem defined, a perk to being really skinny. What is odd is the greenish yellow color of the flesh and the purplish black veins spread across my torso. Even weirder is a cut over my left breast. Lifting my hand I touch the wound then pull my hand away as a wave of pain flows through me. Well that was odd.

What did Bruce do to me before he died? And how can I see myself? With a sigh I push my dirty blonde hair back so it's not in my face. Suddenly I remember the cuffs. I quickly take them off causing everything to go black. Putting them back on I see myself again. Now that's really weird. Taking them off again I set them down on the vanity then head to my dresser.

Like usual I pull out some clothes for me to wear today. Throwing them on the bed I strip off my boxers then grab my towel. After wrapping it around my waist I walk out of my room.

"Percy!" I call.

When no one responds I make my way to the bathroom. Like any other morning I piss, brush my teeth, shower, and head back to my room. Just as I'm about to close my bedroom door the front door opens.

"Al! Are you awake?" Mrs. Jackson calls.

"Yeah, just give me a sec to get dressed."

"Take your time honey."

I quickly dry off before putting on some lotion and deodorant. Next I put on my boxers, jeans, and shirt then head into the hall.

"Hey honey are you ok?" The woman asks.

"Yeah I feel better." I admit.

"Well sit down, I brought you breakfast." She says.

Nodding I walk to the diner table and pull out a chair. As I sit down I hear a plate slide towards me.

"Here you go sweetie." She says while placing a fork in my hand.

Placing my hand on the side of the plate I pull it closer to me. With the utmost care I start to eat said food. It's simple bacon with some eggs and toast.

"So I filled out all the adoption papers, last night. From now on I am your legal guardian." She states.

"That's cool." I comment.

"Yes it is. But...ummm, I found out some rather interesting information."

"What?" I inquire.

"Well it would seem that your mother left you a lot of money in her will."

"Really?" I ask, totally shocked.

"Yes. She told her lawyer not to tell Bruce or you until you were eighteen. I feel you should know now, given the circumstances."

"How much money are we talking about?"

"A quarter of a million dollars."

"WHAT?! My mother doesn't have that kind of money."

"Well, apparently, she inherited it all from your grandfather after he died. I guess she just couldn't bring herself to spend any of it. So she wrote it all to you."

I feel tears well up in my eyes. She's always thinking about me, even in death.

"The lawyer and I agreed that it would be best to give you access to your account. I'm going to put the card on the center of the table."

"Thank you."

"It's not a problem Al. Now finish your food while I pack up your stuff."

"Pack up my stuff?"

"Well yeah. You're going to be living with Percy, Gabe, and I now. Percy's pretty excited about it, he's cleaning his room as we speak."

I can't help but chuckle at her words. Sally stands then ruffles my hair as she walks by. Quickly I finish my food then grab the card. After slipping it into my pocket I grab the plate and take it to the sink.

"Well that was rather easy." She comments.

"Yeah I don't really have a lot of stuff to pack." I admit.

Before she can reply the door opens.

"Mom can you take me to the laundry mat, I need to do a load or two. Hi Al." Percy says.

"Sure hun, I'm heading that way. Here take this to your room. I'll wait for you in the car."

"Alright. Hey Al you coming?" Percy asks.

"Yeah. Let me get my shoes on."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

After goofing around at the laundry mat for a while we decided to go home. At first we were going to walk but after a mile we hailed a cab. He paid with what was left of his money from yesterday while I grabbed our laundry bags.

"So do you wanna get anything from your place before we head to mine?" Percy asks as we walk into the building.

"Nah. If I need anything then we can head over." I reply.

"Alright well I guess we just have to move you in." He chuckles while unlocking the door.

As we enter the little apartment, I can't help but gag. Smelly Gabe must be in the living room. Thanks to all the noise he and his friends are making I can see everything in the room, in mist form of course. They are playing poker while the television blares ESPN. I'm guessing that's why chips and beer cans are strewn all over the carpet.

Hardly looking up, Gabe says around his cigar, "So, you're home."

"Yeah we are." Percy snides.

"Sorry about what happened to your dad Al." Our super, Eddie, says.

"He wasn't my dad." I hiss.

"You got that right. Hey you boys got any cash?" Gabe pipes.

He always expects Percy to fund his gambling addiction. Percy hates it and Gabe. Once we planned to beat him up to teach him a lesson. However we changed our mind when we thought about how Sally would react.

"I don't have any cash, " Percy lies him.

"You took a taxi from the bus station. Probably paid with a twenty. Got six, seven bucks in change. You're mom drove you to the laundry mat. And by the sweat stains in your shirt I know you walked home. Somebody expects to live under this roof, he ought to carry his own weight. Am I right, Eddie?"

Like Bruce Gabe has a knack sniffing out money, the lazy mutt. So I'm not shocked he called Percy's bluff. However he's wrong about how much money he has; Percy has twenty seven bucks left.

"Come on Gabe, their just kids." Eddie tries.

"Am I right?" He asks.

"No you're not." I reply.

"Really?" He challenges.

"Yeah. We picked up some food on the way so we only have two bucks left." I lie.

"Well fork it over." He orders.

"Whatever. I hop you loose." Percy growls as he gives Gabe two dollars.

"Your report card came, brain boy! I wouldn't act so snooty!" He calls as we walk away.

When we enter Percy's room he slams the door.

"I hate that guy." He growls.

"Me too. Come on lets put up our stuff."

"Alright."

Together we fold and put away all of the cloths. Percy even helped me drag a nightstand into his room from my old apartment. We push it beside his dresser, which is against the wall opposite the door. I put all my clothes in there. After that we brought in the the umbrella holder and put it beside the door. Finally we move my bed and the iron rails into his room. We push it against the right wall of the small room, right across from his. As soon as we finished I flop down on my bed and lay back. Percy does the same on his own bed.

"I kinda feel bad that we ditched Grover yesterday. But he was really freaking me out."

"Yeah."

"Percy, Al."

The door opens as Sally walks in.

"Wow the room looks amazing." She says sweetly.

"Thanks." We chime in unison.

"Here I got you boys some lunch and some sweets."

She sets two bags on my bed then walks over to Percy's. Grabbing the big paper bag I reach in and pull out a burger. I know people say BK is bad for you but it's cheap and pretty good. After unwrapping the sandwich I start to eat.

"Hey, Sally how about some bean dip, huh?" Gabe calls.

I can hear Percy grind his teeth together.

She ignores him then says, "I have a surprise for you two."

"What is it?" Percy asks.

"We're going to the beach. "

"Montauk?" He asks.

"Yup. Three nights-same cabin. " She pipes.

"When?"

"As soon as I get changed. Have you ever been to the beach before, Al?" She inquiries.

"Yeah. It was the last thing I saw before I lost my vision and my mom." I admit.

"Oh... I'm sorry, would you want to go or does it bring back sad memories."

"It's perfect." I reply as tears slips from my eyes.

"Oh Al." She says.

I feel the bed dip as warm arms wrap around me. This time I don't break down, I simply rest my head on her shoulder.

"Bean dip, Sally? Didn't you hear me?" Gabe yells.

I feel her head turn towards Percy.

"I was on my way, honey. We were just talking about the trip. " she replies.

The woman releases me then stands.

"The trip? You mean you were serious about that?" The drunken slob asks.

"I knew it, he won't let us leave." Percy mutters as he stands.

I do the same and follow them out the room.

"Of course he will." She says evenly.

"Your step-father is just worried about money. That's all. Besides Gabriel won't have to settle for bean dip. I'll make him enough seven-layer dip for the whole weekend. Guacamole. Sour cream. The works. "

"So this money for your trip ... It comes out of your clothes budget, right?" He says in a softer voice.

"Yes, honey, " She answers.

"And you won't take my car anywhere but there and back."

"We'll be very careful." She assures.

"Maybe if you hurry with that seven-layer dip ... And maybe if the kid apologizes for interrupting my poker game." He snides.

I really wanna beat him with my cane.

"I'm really sorry I interrupted your incredibly important poker game. Please go back to it right now. "

I cant help but chuckle at Percy's lackluster tone.

"Yeah, whatever, " Gabe replies.

"Percy, Al go pack a bag." Sally orders sweetly.

With a nod I walk back into the room.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

After an hour of packing, and waiting for Sally to get changed, Percy and I loaded the bags in the car. I sit in the back while Percy takes the passenger seat. Sally said I could sit in the front but I declined, I feel weird about it for some reason.

"Al you're going to love our rental Cabin. It's on the south shore, way out at the tip of Long Island. I'll admit it's a little pastel box with faded curtains and it's kinda half sunken into the dunes. There is always sand in the sheets and spiders in the cabinets. Yeah most of the time the sea is too cold to swim in. But it's still really nice." Percy pipes.

"How long have you been going there?" I ask.

"Ever since I was a baby. Mom's been coming here longer though." He replies.

"It must be really special to you Sally."

"It is, I met Percy's dad there." She admits.

"Wow. That is special." I agree.

"Do you know where your parents met?" She asks sweetly.

"Yeah, a frat party. Mom said I was a happy accident." I reply.

"So you never met your father?" Percy asks.

"Nope. But that doesn't matter to me." I lie.

"What was the last thing you saw?" Percy asks, changing the subject.

I can't help but smile as I remember the scene.

"It was a beautiful summer day. Mom and I were sitting on a cliff that over looked the sandy coast of Barbados. We just finished swimming so we were both kinda wet. A light breeze blew over us, it gave me goose pimples. She moved so that I was sitting between her legs then wrapped a towel around us. Wrapping her arms around me she held me close and rested her chin on my head. The sun was starting to set into the ocean, turning it into a sea of pretty colors. She kissed my wet hair then told me everything was going to be alright. After that we just sat there and watched. Eventually I fell asleep and I haven't seen a thing since." I answer.

"What happened?" Sally inquires.

"I got really sick and was in a coma for three months. Then when I woke up I couldn't see anymore."

"Well that's not true. Tell mom what you told me." Percy pipes.

With a chuckle I explain my gift to Sally.

"That explains why you're so good at navigating new areas." She says.

"Yeah. It is helpful."

The car turns then stops. Sally cuts off the engine and announces our arrival. I get out of the car then walk to the trunk. Percy joins me and opens the trunk. We both grab our own bag and one of the two bags Sally brought. She closed the trunk then we started making our way to the cabin.

It doesn't take long for us to get there.

"Alright boys, Lets start cleaning." Sally prompts.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

After cleaning the whole cabin we take a walk on the beach. During our walk we fed blue corn chips to the seagulls, munched on blue jelly beans, blue saltwater taffy, and all the other free samples Sally had brought from work. I don't get the whole blue food thing but apparently it's her way of rebelling against Gabe; like not changing her last name from Jackson to Ugliano.

When it got dark, we made a fire. We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. Sally told us stories about when she was a kid, back before her parents died in the plane crash. She told us about the books she wanted to write someday, when she had enough money to quit the candy shop.

Eventually Percy started asking questions about his dad. I didn't want to intrude on their private conversations so I said I was tired and walked back to the cabin. When I got there I changed into my pajamas and got in bed. Closing my eyes I wait for that weightless floating feeling I get when I sleep.

It comes rather quickly then disappears as sand molds around me. A warm breeze blows over me as the smell of Barbados fills my lungs.

"Alcides." A soft voice says.

"Mama?"

"No but you may call me mother if you wish." The familiar voice replies.

"You're the peacock woman from my other dream?"

"Yes." She replies.

The sand beside me shifts around. Turning my head I see her feathery frame laying beside me.

"There are certain events in motion that will change your life forever. If you keep associating yourself with Percy Jackson, that is."

"What do you mean?"

"If you stay around him you may get hurt, or worse. I don't want to see anything bad happen to you."

"Why do you care? You don't even know me."

"I honestly don't know why. All I know is I want to protect you. Hell a part of me even wants to take care of you. Maybe it's because both of my sons hate me so I'm projecting my maternal instincts on you. Or maybe it's because you're a orphan, and a blind one to boot. It could be because you don't let your disability hold you back. Maybe I'm just lonely and need something to coddle. Like I said I don't know."

"That's sweet but I'm not going to abandon Percy. He's my best friend, my brother, the only family I have left. I refuse to let him face anything bad alone."

Her hand touches mine then wraps around it.

"Then let me be your guardian. Let me be your, adoptive mother." She offers.

"Ok."

She sits up then tugs my hand so I'm sitting to. Without warning she pulls me into a tight hug.

"I'll always be with you Al. Even when you think I'm not."

Before I can return the hug a loud clap of thunder shakes the beach.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

My eyes shoot open as another loud clap rips through the air. Percy shifts uncomfortably beside me then jolts upright. He's sweating and breathing really hard.

"Percy are you ok?" I ask.

The way he grips my hand tells me he's not. Our silence is interrupt by a third roar. This time I hear Sally's bed springs creek.

"Hurricane. " Sally gasps.

It's weird to think there's a hurricane this early in the summer but, from the sound of it, that's what's happening. In the distance is a loud angry, tortured cry that puts me on edge. Percy grips my hand as he gasps. An odd metallic clomping noise seems to be getting closer. Suddenly there's pounding on the door followed by yelling.

Sally jumps up and throws open the lock allowing the door to creek open.

"Searching all night. What were you thinking?"

The speaker is Grover, I can tell by his goat legs.

"What happened at school? What didn't you boys tell me?" Sally shouts over the rain.

"Oh Zeus and the other gods! It's right behind me! Didn't you tell her?" Grover growls.

"One of you tell me now!" Sally orders.

"Mrs. Dobbs turned into a huge bat and tried to kill Percy. So I vaporized her with the sword attached to my cane." I stammer.

She tosses our bags and jackets on the bed.

"Get to the car. All of you. Go!" She orders.

I jump up and pull on my hoodie. As I slip the strap of my duffle bag on I grab my cane and race out the door. We all run to the car. Again Percy takes the front seat so Grover and I are in the backseat.

"So you're a satyr hu?" I ask while buckling my seatbelt.

"Yeah." He says.

"So, you and my mom... Know each other?" Percy asks.

While they talk I take off my basketball shorts then pull on some warm sweats and shoes. When I finish I start listening in on the conversation.

"So you admit there was a Mrs. Dodds!" Percy says.

"Of course. " Grover states.

"Then why-"

"The less you knew, the fewer monsters you'd attract, " Grover says, like that should be perfectly obvious.

"We put Mist over the humans' eyes. We hoped you'd think the kindly one was a hallucination. But it was no good. You started to realize who you are. " The satyr explains.

"I knew there was something wrong with that damn rain." I mutter.

"Who I-wait a minute, what do you mean?" Percy asks.

The weird bellowing noise rises up again somewhere behind us, closer than before. Whatever is chasing us is still on our trail and gaining fast.

"There's too much to explain and not enough time. We have to get you to safety. "

"Safety from what? Who's after us?" Percy asks.

"Oh, nobody much. Just the Lord of the Dead and a few of his blood thirstiest minions." Grover snides.

"Grover!" Sally hisses.

"Sorry, Mrs. Jackson. Could you drive faster, please?"

She quickly takes a hard left.

"Where are we going?" Percy asks.

"The summer camp I told you about. The place your father wanted to send you." Sally's voice is tight; she's trying, for our sake, not to be scared.

"The place you didn't want me to go? What about Al? You can't just leave him alone with Gabe."

"I know that, which Is why he's going with you. Now please, dear, this is hard enough. Try to understand. You're in danger. "

"Because some old ladies cut yarn." He retorts.

"Those weren't old ladies, those were the Fates. Do you know what it means-the fact they appeared in front of you? They only do that when you're about to ... When someone's about to die."

"Whoa. You said **You**."

"No I didn't. I said **Someone**."

"You're not going to die Percy." I assure.

"How do you know that?" He and Grover question simultaneously.

"Because they were looking at me. If anyone's going to die it's going to be me." I state sullenly.

The car goes silent as everyone takes in my words.

"Blaa-ha-ha!"

I look at the goat with a quirked brow.

Suddenly Sally swerves right.

"What was that?" Percy asks.

"We're almost there, another mile. Please. Please. Please. " Sally says, ignoring his question.

My blood starts to boil with anticipation as we get closer. Suddenly a jaw rattling boom cuts through the dark as the car tips forward. We flip, spin, twist, and skid across the road. My seatbelt holds me to the leather in a bone crushing death grip. I can barely breath and my chest really hurts. As soon as we stop I release the belt and fall forward. I can feel glass digging into me as I lay against the roof.

"Percy? Al? Are you ok?" Sally asks.

"I think so." I gasp.

"Yeah." Percy replies.

Based on the way the glass is scattered I can tell the back window is shattered. Rolling on to my stomach I commando crawl out of the with my cane in hand. Placing my hand on the turned over car I follow it to the front of the car.

"Percy, Sally cover your faces I'm gonna bust out the windshield." I call.

"Alright. Hurry Al." Sally says.

Using my cane I smash the windshield. Kneeling down I feel the glass on the ground. So I take off my hoodie and lay it down over the shards.

"Alright you two can crawl out." I inform.

"Al Grover's knocked out, can you get him?" Sally asks.

"Yeah."

Placing my hand on the side of the car I quickly locate the back door. I kneel down and feel for the window. Since there is one I knock it out then reach in. He must not have been wearing a seatbelt cause he's laid out on the roof. With a sigh I grab his shirt and drag him out of the vehicle. Sally was right he's out cold.

"What a great protector he is." Percy grumbles.

Chuckling I heft the goat boy into my arms, so I'm carrying him bridal style. Hmm he's much lighter than I thought he'd be.

"YOU TWO HAVE TO GO, NOW!" Sally prompts.

"Where are we goings?" Percy asks.

"That tree, just keep running straight."

I look in that direction where I see this massive gold tree. Nodding I start to run towards it. There aren't footsteps behind me, in fact I hear arguing. Stopping I turn to see Percy trying to pull Sally towards us. Behind them is a seven foot tall, jacked beyond belief, Minotaur clad in nothing but a diaper. He looks absolutely terrifying and he's headed right for them.

"Percy come on before you get your mother killed!" I call.

That mere comment ends the argument but it's to late. He's only a foot away leaving Sally no choice but to run with Percy, les she wants to get trampled. As they race towards me I start running again. It's not easy running up hill in the rain with a Styr in my arms. But I have to push on, if I don't we're dead. There's a loud bellow of rage as the ground starts to shake.

 _"Turn left."_ A familiar voice advises.

I immediately turn left and the beast passes me. It turns around and runs right past me. Dropping Grover I turn and watch as it runs for Sally.

"STOP!" I call as I race towards them.

It does then turns to face me. He doesn't growl or even seem angry. In fact he looks scared and confused.

"Don't you dare hurt them." I order.

It shies away from me as I approach. The closer I get the meeker it look.

 _"Al look out!"_ The voice warns.

"AL!" Sally and Percy cry.

Suddenly a bolt of lightning hits the ground beside me. The force of it's impact sends me flying. This feels so familiar but I don't understand why. Flashes of pain torment me but I'm still in the air. As if on cue my shoulder collides with something solid. I can feel the ball of my shoulder bone being crushed against it's socket. A pained cry makes it's way past my lips as the agony fills me.

As I start to fall long hard rods hit my chest, ruthlessly. Some of them break under my weight and force. While my body just bounces off of others. I can feel my bones break and my skin split as this tall assailant batters me. The coup de grâce was when one of the thicker rods hits my head, knocking me out cold.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hera's Point of View.

I watch as Al stands up to the beast trying to kill his friend.

"What a brave boy." I chuckle.

"He's a pest. Hade's pest." Zeus growls.

Leaning back in my seat I roll my eyes.

"Oh please he's your son and you know it. He has your eyes, lips, nose, jaw line, hell he's even got your ears. The boy is yours, there is no doubt about it." I state.

"Then this should please you." he says.

Zeus stands up then throws a bolt down. I watch as the bolt hits the ground beside Al and sends him flying. Gasping I stand, hand covering my moth, as I watch him hit a tree. He screams in agony before falling and hitting every branch on his way down. Without hesitation I send a gust of wind to stop him from hitting the ground. With the utmost care I set him down on the cold wet grass.

He's motionless, lifeless. I feel my heart stop and shatter as I look at him. Tears seep from my eyes as my blood boils. Without a second thought I turn around and hit Zeus in the face with my Lotus staff. He falls to the ground then looks up at me, stunned.

"YOU IGNORANT BASTARD! HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO A CHILD, HE'S ONLY TWELVE!" I yell while continuing my assault.

Suddenly strong arms wrap around me, pining my arms to my sides. They carry me out of the throne room and into my garden. The person releases me and I fall to my knees.

"He's dead. My boy is dead." I sob.


	5. Chapter 5

My eyes slowly flutters open as fingers comb through my hair.

"Hey baby." A bitter sweet voice whispers.

Tears sting my eyes as I swallow hard.

"Mama?"

"Yeah. It's been a while hu?" She asks, voice cracking slightly.

I simply nod.

"I'm so sorry Al. I just wasn't strong enough to escape and it all happened so fast. One minute I'm on my way to your school then the next a harpy attacks my car and I lost control of it. I'm sorry." She sobs.

I try to sit up but as soon as I move pain shoots through me.

"What happened to me?" I ask while clutching my chest.

"A lightning bolt knocked you into a tree."

"Am I dead?" I ask.

"Yes. But you won't be for long."

"What do you mean."

"Al you are a very powerful demigod. For in you flows the blood of three gods."

"Three?"

"Yes. My mother's father Pluto, god of the underworld. My father's father Apollo, the sun god. And your father Zeus, King of the gods."

"Holy crud."

"Yeah. You've always been able to use the powers you inherited from Apollo; Vitakinesis, enhanced speed, and the ability to tell if someone's lying to you."

"What does Vitakinesis mean?"

"The ability to heal yourself and others. Though you've only ever been able to heal yourself and slowly at that."

"Oh. Well what about Pluto?"

"Well when your really angry you can induce terror into people with just a look and as of late monster leadership. From Zeus you've inherited his just nature, his charisma, combat skills, beauty, ability to entertain people without trying, tallness, and enhanced strength."

"That kinda sucks."

"Alcides all demigods who don't know of their true nature can't use their powers, not like you can. Take Percy, for instance, his father is Poseidon. He is a powerful demigod and yet, at the moment, he seems to have no powers. It's the same thing with other demigods that don't know, they can't use their powers. They're only truly active when the demigod knows their heritage. I didn't seem to have powers, neither did my parents, because of that we died."

Her words slowly sink into my brain and I remember something. The night after her funeral Bruce got really drunk and started blaming me for her death. He took my cane from me and started beating me with it. It lasted for hours till I just passed out. When I woke up the next day I was perfectly fine, save for some bruises. And his car accident...I was in the car with him. I flew out the windshield and hit the road. I should have died but I didn't. Instead I got up, lumbered home and went to sleep. Now all I have are the bruises and that weird cut.

"So what now?" I ask.

"You wake up."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

My eyes shoot open as a soft breeze kisses my cheek. Sitting up, slowly, I feel no pain but I do feel kinda groggy. I reach out for my cane but it's no where near me.

"Great." I grumble as I flop back down.

Closing my eyes I just lay here. Waiting for some sound to tell me where to go or what's around me, but they're isn't one, it's just me and the dirt. This odd sensation comes over me like the vines and dirt are seeping into my skin, becoming one with me. I feel tremors vibrating through the ground. They're footsteps northwest of me. Standing I stagger towards the vibrations. They seem to break around objects so I'm able to safely move around.

Then I see it, the tree from last night, at the top of a hill. I must have rolled down after hitting the tree or something. As I walk back up I can sense a long heavy object on the ground. Walking to the object I kneel down and touch it. To my dismay it's just a broken branch. Suddenly I feel vibrations heading towards me rather quickly. There's some arguing up hill so I listen in.

"We already checked boy, he's gone." A gruff kinda lazy voice states.

"He's not dead he can't be! Now let me go, I have to find him! He's all I got!" A familiar voice retorts.

"PERCY!" I call.

The argument stops as Percy calls out, "ALCIDES!"

"YEAH!" I reply while walking up the hill.

The footsteps come quicker as they race towards me. I continue to make my way to the top. About halfway there a body collides with mine and arms wrap around my waist.

"They said you were gone but I knew you weren't. I just knew it." Percy sobs in my chest.

I rub his back and let him cry for a bit.

"Mom's gone. The Minotaur killed her." He whimpers.

Tears fill my eyes as I rest my head on his.

"Tell me what happened."

"After the lightning hit you it turned and grabbed her. Then it squeezed her and she blew up like Mrs. Dobbs." He says.

Ok that makes no sense. Sally was a human so if he did squeeze her she would have been crushed and there'd still be a body.

"Come along boys, it's not safe out here."

"Mr. Brunner?" I ask.

"Yeah he's a centaur." Percy informs with a sad chuckle as we part.

"Hey Al. Thanks for saving my tail out there." Grover says while clomping over.

I smile at him and brush it off with a shrug. The three of us head up the hill.

"So how long was I MIA?" I ask.

"Two days. Percy was out cold to." Grover explains.

"As soon as I woke up I asked about you. Grover said they looked but they couldn't find you."

"Yeah I rolled down the hill and then some."

"How'd you make it back?" Mr. Brunner asks, butting into our conversation.

I simply shrug and keep walking.

"How are you even alive? The gods and I saw you hit that tree on Olympus. You weren't even breathing when you touched the ground." A new voice inquiries.

"My great grandpa is Apollo." I deadpan.

"So that's how your a demigod." Grover says.

"Kinda. Apollo's my grandfather's father. My grandmother's father was Pluto and my father is Zeus. I'm just good at tapping into the powers I inherited from Apollo." I explain.

"Wait you're directly related to three gods?" Grover asks.

I nod.

"What was your grandmothers name?" Mr. Brunner asks.

"Paula Ludovic."

"Well Hades did have a fling with a Jessica Ludovic so that checks out."

"Who's you're grandfather?"

"Izaiah Zeddo."

"Isn't Apollo still in love with that Zeddo chick."

"Yeah. So that checks out to. As for the Zeus part...well you do look like him so nine time outta ten you're his." The new guy says.

"So what's your name exactly?" This voice is feminine and rather alluring.

I turn towards where her voice was and ask, "Could you repeat that, I wasn't listening?"

"What's your name?" She asks in a huff.

Her mist is olive green and slightly taller than Percy's, now, ocean blue.

"Alcides Ludovic Zeddo. And you are?"

"Annabeth Chase. So you're blind hu?"

"Annabeth that is so-"

"Straight forward, I like that." I interject, cutting some tall hefty sky blue boy off.

"Yeah I'm blind. By the way have any of you seen my cane?"

"Don't worry I'll look for it." Grover pipes.

"Me to. Percy you coming." The sky blue boy asks.

Percy's heart skips a beat then starts pumping faster. Hmm that's odd, I've never been able to hear a person's heartbeat before. It's kinda cool.

"Umm-"

"Go Percy, I'll be fine." I prompt.

"Alright see you Al." He says before following them.

The two older men are chatting about a foot ahead of us so it's just me and Miss. Chase. However I don't know what to say so I say nothing. The walk is silent and long then she grabs my hand. I look at her in confusion.

"There are steps." She explains.

Honestly I knew that already. I can hear Mr. Brunner and the other guy walking up them. However I don't tell her that. Instead I nod and smile.

"Thanks Annabeth."

"Don't mention it."

It's more of a threat then a comment. I'm guessing she has a tough girl appearance to uphold. Ok Annabeth Chase I'll keep your soft side a secrete. We walk up the few steps hand in hand then she leads me to the door. As soon as we pass the threshold she lets go of my hand. With a sigh I tap my foot on the ground a few times.

The sound waves from the tapping hit the objects in the room and fill them with a grey mist. In the center of the room is a table with four chairs around it. To the right is a love seat that's pushed against a wall. I decide to walk over to the love seat and lay down, as I still feel kinda groggy.

"Are you sure you're blind?" The girl asks.

"Positive."

"So how'd you find the couch?" She inquires.

"Echolocation. That's why I was tapping my foot."

"How dose that work for ya?" The other guy says.

Wow he looks like a human shaped keg filled with red wine. I'm guessing he's Dionysus, god of wine, madness, drama, sympathy, and vegetation. Hmm I guess Mr. Brunner's class really was important, cause it's really coming in handy right about now.

"Great. The sound waves hit the object and a grey mist, in the the shape of whatever said object is, is visible to me. Although, Annabeth, you are Olive green. I'm guessing it's because your mother's Athena am I right?"

"How did you..."

"The olive is a symbol of Athena and your olive green. It's not hard to put two and two together. Like I know the Mr. Brunner is a centaur because he has horse legs. I know the other dude is Dionysus because he looks like a human wine bottle. I was the only person who paid attention in Mr. Brunner's class." I state while closing my eyes.

"That's rather interesting Al. And, please, call me Chiron." The centaur says.

Before I can reply shoes thud against the stairs outside. Percy walks over to me then lays my cane on my chest.

"There you go Al, we cleaned it off and everything." He says.

"Thank guys I owe you."

"Consider us even." Grover jokes.

"Same." Percy chuckles.

The other boy says nothing as he pulls out a seat at the table. Percy and Grover follow suit while I merely lay here, trying to regain myself. They talk amongst themselves but loud enough for me to still hear. Every word Dionysus is saying is kinda making me upset. He's treating Percy like a pest or a nuisance and he doesn't even know him.

"Percy, did your mother tell you nothing?" Mr. Brunner asks.

"She said...She told me she was afraid to send me here, even though my father had wanted her to. She said that once I was here, I probably couldn't leave. She wanted to keep me close to her." Percy replies.

"Typical, that's how they usually get killed. Young man, are you bidding or not?" The god scoffs.

"Yeah because being a loving parent is by far worse than watching your child die while you sit on your butt and drink." I hiss.

"Excuse me?" He asks.

"You heard me. You Gods think your all that because you have powers. Well guess what so do we and one day you're all going to get slapped by Karma, just like Kronos did." I growl.

"Now you listen here yo-"

I sit up as my blood boils with a fire stronger than anything I've ever felt before.

"SCREW YOU AND THE GOD. YOU'RE HEARTLESS AND SOULLESS BASTARDS!" I growl.

I know we are looking each other in the eyes, even though I can't see his. There's a thick smell in the air. It's new but not foreign to me. In fact I know it all to well. It's fear and all six people at the table reek of it. With a growl I storm out of the house and go for a run.

I have no idea where I'm going I just need to get away from everyone. So I run until the only vibrations I feel are from my own feet then I run some more. My lungs are on fire and my legs feel numb. Slowing down I drop to my knees then lay on the ground and curl up in a tight ball. My anger and the smell of their fear causes long forgotten memories to resurface. Bruce's loud voice booms in my head as flashes of pain hit me.

 _ **"YOU BASTARD!"**_

 _ **"IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!"**_

 _ **"GOOD FOR NOTHING LITTLE SHIT!"**_

 _ **"WHY WON'T YOU DIE ALREADY?!"**_

 _ **"I'M GUNNA KILL YOU!"**_

All the memories I've repressed to attack me. Then it hits me; all the times I passed out he killed me. Times my father could have saved me. Anger replaces my pain and with every hit and kick it increases. Suddenly I hear a familiar female voice drowning out Bruce's.

ㇸ6 _You know, the sun is in your eyes._

 _And hurricanes and rains and black and cloudy skies._

 _You're running up and down that hill._

 _You turn it on and off at will._

 _There's nothing here to thrill or bring you down._

 _And if you've got no other choice You know you can follow my voice._

 _Through the dark turns and noise of this wicked little camp._

 _Oh Lady, luck has led you here but they're so twisted up they'll twist you up, I fear._

 _The pious, hateful and devout, you're turning tricks til you're turned out, the wind so cold it burns, you're burning out and blowing round._

 _And if you've got no other choice you know you can follow my voice._

 _Through the dark turns and noise of this wicked little camp._

 _The fates are vicious and they're cruel._

 _You learn too late you've used two wishes like a fool._

 _And then you're someone you are not, and Junction City ain't the spot, remember Mrs. Lot and when she turned around._

 _And if you've got no other choice you know you can follow my voice._

 _Through the dark turns and noise of this wicked little camp._

The wind blows over me as if to shoo away my anxiety. It carries the scent of fresh pomegranates and lotus flowers. A soft slightly moist breeze kisses my cheek as the sweet melody replays in my head, lulling me to sleep.

The ground is softer now as slender hands stroke my hair.

"Do you hate me child?"

"No Hera, I don't hate you. I just hate the way you treat us demigods. You of all people should understand our pain, mother. You and your siblings were unwanted and unloved by your father. So why do you hate us so much. We didn't ask to be born. Yet you treat us like we did and deserve to be punished for it." I accuse.

"That is true."

"Why?" I ask.

"I was angry. So I took my anger out on them."

"I didn't mean why you do it. I mean why do you did it to the kids. It's not our fault you husband can't keep his dick in his toga."

"Language." She growls while pulling my hair.

I groan slightly as the roots cling to my scalp.

"Sorry." I whimper.

She starts stroking my hair again then lets out a soft sigh.

"Last time I tried to punish Zeus he hung me over the pit of eternal tournament for two years. "

"Have you tried leaving him?"

"I can't he's my husband." She says.

"So what. If he doesn't respect your marriage then it's not a marriage it's a hostage situation."

She ponders my words then changes the subject.

"You need to wake up and go to one of the cabins. They're warm and safer."

"Nah, I just wanna stay like this."

"Ok. But when you wake up you must go back to the cabins."

"I will, I promise."

"And you will apologize to Dionysus."

"Nope. I refuse to apologize to any God till they prove me wrong, which they never will. Unless someone teachers you all a lesson."

"Really and what's that lesson?" She asks.

"Don't miss treat you children, less they be your downfall. Or, simply put, Karma's a bitch."

"Language." She scolds while pulling my hair again.

I really need to get a haircut.

 **Wicked little town from the play Hedwig and the angry inch.**


	6. Chapter 6

Hera and I didn't speak much after that. She merely stroked my hair while singing that same song, in the sweet way that she does. Occasionally she fed me some fruits from her garden. What stuck out most was the sweet pomegranate seeds and juicy peach slices. Though the apples, mangoes, berries, and oranges tasted amazing to. I'm glad she did cause I was starting to get really hungry. It was the most peace I've ever had in my sleep; unfortunately it didn't last long.

Once my body got all the rest it needed I was forced to wake up. The process is slow of course; first the grass beneath me starts to get really wet. Then soft yet cold droplets of water start to hit my face and bare arms. Lastly the goddess herself starts to disappear. When she is gone my head is left on the cold wet ground. Freezing rain has drenched me and the ground around me. It kinda feels like I'm becoming one with the earth,in a good way. Hell even the cool rain feels amazing to me. I'll admit I always had a thing for extreme temperatures, like scolding heat and freezing cold. Either of the two soothe me when I'm upset so that could be why I feel content. So much so I don't move, I simply listen and feel.

There aren't many sounds save for snoring in the distance, which explains the lack of movement around here. My fingers dig into the soft dirt. It makes me feel weird, like a different form of life is pulsing in my palms. It seeps into my pores and invades my veins like a flood of new blood, or something awakening in my blood. I feel like my body is literally becoming one with the land. Like our hearts are colliding and melting into one, wait does dirt even have a heart? Can dirt feel enough to actually become one with me? Is what I'm feeling possible or is it all a figment of my awakening brain?

Of course it's possible just like being biologically related to three powerful gods is possible. Apollo, Zeus, and Hades...Apollo, Zeus, and Hades...Apollo, Zeus, and Hades. The names keep replaying in my head like a bad song that you can't shake because it's too catchy. Apollo god of the sun, light, healing, music, poetry, archery, reason, and prophecy. Zeus god of honor, justice, lightning, rain, and the skies. Hades god of the underworld, wealth, and lord of the dead.

Their blood flows through my veins. I'm the grandson of Apollo and Hades. Zeus himself is my father. Yet none of them ever did what their role entails. None of them ever protected me from Bruce's vicious attacks. None of them took me in when my mother died or when Bruce put me in the hospital. I was focused to fend for myself against a man when I am just a boy. They are powerful, they are gods, they are my family and yet... They've done nothing for me. Except give me these powers that I barely have but have been using all my life to survive.

Mom once told me that the people who have power but don't use it are cowards. Maybe that's why they refuse to help me, they're cowards. Is that even possible, a cowardice god, or am I looking at this wrong. Maybe they're not cowards, just lazy jerks that like to watch people suffer. Apollo, Zeus, and Hades are they cowards or just lazy jerks. I'm not sure and I don't know if I'll ever forgive them or even like them. However, out of the three, I hate Hades the least. At least he made contact with me and acknowledges me as his family.

With a sigh I force myself to stop thinking about them and just focus on the cool rain.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The ground starts to vibrate lightly from my left. Someone must be approaching me. With a sigh I grip my cane and start to stand. Turning I face the direction of the person approaching.

"There you are we've been looking all over for you." Dionysus states.

"You haven't been looking hard enough. I've been sleeping here for hours."

He growls slightly then hisses, "Come along boy."

He starts to walk away so I follow him.

"You're going to need to shape up if you want to make it here." He advises.

"Maybe you should stop blaming all demigods for the actions of one guy." I retort.

"Ha, you are such a fool." He says.

"I'm not the fool brother, you are. Only a fool blames many for the actions of one. Only ignorant bastards punish the innocent for the crimes of the guilty. So I guess that makes you a foolish ignorant bastard just like all the other gods."

"You best mind you're manners-"

"Or what you're going to whip me?"

"Maybe."

"My stepfather use to do that till my back was bloody and my muscles were split." I scoff.

"There are things worse than whippings."

"Like being raped, getting your head bashed into a wall, being cut with a hot razor blade, having salt and vinegar rubbed into your wounds, getting thrown into a glass mirror, ect. Been there done that yet here I am. So tell me, oh mighty, god of sympathy what can you do to hurt me."

"We could kill you." He threatens.

"DO IT! I have absolutely nothing to live for. My mother's dead, my dad's a dead beat, and you guys can take care of Percy."

He says nothing as we continue our walk. This allows me to take in my surroundings. The air is damper here so I'm guessing there's some type of body of water nearby. The smell of burnt wood and a slight cracking sound alerts me to a fire in front of us. I can hear soft snoring as well as murmurs and rustling of sheets.

"Leave me alone Dionysus, I can guide myself from here." I hiss before walking away from him.

Due to the noise I can see a few cabins. Sniffing the air I'm hit with twelve different scents. The first smells of rain so I'm guessing it's Zeus's. The next smells like pomegranates it must be mother Hera's. Cabin three smells like the ocean, which means it's Poseidon's. Four smells like an assortment of flowers and tomatoes, Demeter I assume. The odd scent of gun powder and blood cause my nose to scrunch up, five has to be Ares. As soon as I smell olives I know that six cabin belongs to Athena. The one across from it smells like a warm summer day oddly enough, must be Apollo's Cabin. The next smells like a stag and other woodland critters so I'm guessing it Artemis's. When the scent of iron and burning coals hit me the only thing I can think is Hephaestus. A sweet perfume like smell follows, Aphrodite. The next one smells like Zeus, Apollo, Ares, Aphrodite, mixed with other godly scents so I don't know who it belongs to. However since the last smells like wine, making it Dionysus's, the one before it must have been Hermes's.

"I'll be in Hera's Cabin." I state as I start walking towards the second cabin.

"Whatever." He grumbles before storming off.

As I enter I tap my cane around the room.

 _There is no need for that my dear. This room is exactly like yours at home. Also there is a personal bathroom behind my statue, which is behind your bed. Oh and your camp outfit is on the bed._

"Thanks Hera."

 _It is no problem child. Now if you need me just pray, otherwise I'll let you be. Fare well Alcides._

"Bye." I mutter.

With a sigh I walk towards the general area where my bed usually is. Setting my cane down on the mattress I follow the frame to the headboard. Just like she said there's a huge stone statue behind it. When I get there I strip off my muddy clothes then stand up and feel around for a tub. Rather than finding an actual tub I find three steps that lead to a shallow crater in the ground. Reaching out I note that I can touch the sides of the tub. Walking forward I feel the faucet against my chest so I reach out for the knobs on either side of it. A chain hanging around the neck of the faucet. I take the chain in my hand then follow it to the stopper attached to it.

Feeling around with my foot I quickly find the drain. So I bend over to plug up the hole before turning on the water. I wait until the water is up to my hips before turning it off. When I sit down the water comes right up to my neck, which I think is perfect. Leaning forward I feel around till I touch a small square sheet of cloth and a bar of soap. I take both items then start to wash myself.

As soon as I finish I place both items back where I found them then unplug the drain. Feeling around again I find a puffy towel. I start to dry myself off while exiting the tub. Just as I reach my bed a rooster cries loudly. Wow that's not a total cliché. With a roll of my eyes I start to get dressed. To my glee I find a pair of boxer briefs, ankle socks, loose jeans, and a shirt that's one size to big. It feels nice, like my normal attire. However the shirt does feel different. It's lighter and the fabric feels nicer against my skin. I'm guessing this isn't a Hanes shirt. Oh well I hated those shirts anyway.

Sitting on my bed I slip on my converse and lace them up. I stand then walk to the door.

"Hey Alcides!" A feminine voice calls.

It's the girl from yesterday, Annabeth, I can tell by her color and voice. She has a soft Mezzo-soprano with a slight rasp to it. Though the rasp could simply be from yelling a lot.

"Hello Annabeth." I greet.

"Why are you in Hera's cabin?" She asks harshly.

I simply shrug off the question then ask, "Can you lead me to where we get food. I'm starving and there isn't enough noise for me to find it myself."

Honestly that's a lie I can smell the food from a mile away. She groans in announce then takes my hand. I can't help but smirk as she pulls me away from the camp.

"You know for a guy that made Dionysus scared you're pretty pathetic." She chuckles.

I stop mid stride as my smile flattens.

"I'm not pathetic." I growl while pulling my hand from hers.

Without another word I blow past her and follow my nose. Along the way I knock into a few people. None of them say anything, in fact I smell fear coming from them. I shouldn't be shocked because that is my hot button. Anytime anyone calls me pathetic I flip out. Percy says it's really weird just how scary I can get.

Soon I reach some steps where there are multiple voices. As I walk up the steps the talking dies down. I easily find an empty table then sit. I can't believe she said I was pathetic. To think I was starting to like her. The floor vibrates as someone approaches my table. The air smells like Ares' cabin did mixed with the smell of wet dog. The vibrations are strong so the person must be heavy. If it's a child of Ares than that heft is most likely muscle but I'm not scared, I'm to angry to be scared.

"Hey." She says while tapping my shoulder.

I turn my boiling gaze to her causing her to step back.

"What?" I growl.

"Umm...I...Uh..."

"Spit it out already!" I order.

"Will you join my capture the flag team. The game is this Friday in the forest." She says quickly.

"Fine but I'm not guarding the damn flag." I hiss.

"Ok...You can be border patrol." She says.

"No I'm getting that damn flag, end of conversation. Now go away." I order.

She stays for a moment as if contemplating weather or not to argue. With a growl I glare at her as the air around us goes cold. Again she steps back as I stand up.

"Alright you can get the flag." She agrees.

I stare at her as she backs away then take my seat. As soon as I sit down four more sets of vibrations head my way. Only two chairs move.

"What did she want?" Percy says.

"She wanted me to join her capture the flag team." I state.

"You said no right?" Annabeth says.

"What does it matter to you? I'm just some pathetic blind burden."

"I never said that!" She defends.

"Oh what you think I can't hear? You think I'm def to?"

"No I mean-"

"You said I was pathetic. I fully intend to make you suffer for that." I threaten.

"I didn't mean it like that, it was just a joke."

I can tell she's being honest but I'm to hurt to really care. She said I was pathetic, be it a joke or not, that really hurt my feelings. Personally I don't like being around people that hurt my feelings.

"Go away Chase." I hiss.

It's silent for a moment then two sets of footsteps walk away.

"You ok man?" Percy asks.

I nod.

"Hey man. I doubt she meant it like that. Annabeth has a tendency to say mean stuff when she's trying to be funny." Grover defends.

I glare at him causing him to gulp.

"Why don't I get you some food. Hey just say what kind of drink you want and the goblet will fill up with it."

I hear his hooves clomp away as Percy announces that he wants a blue cherry coke.

"Hey it worked." He chuckle dryly.

He's uncomfortable or hiding something.

"What's wrong?" I ask before ordering a salted caramel milkshake.

"Well I kinda promised Annabeth I'd be on her team for capture the flag." He stammers.

"So. Percy just because I don't like her doesn't mean you can't be friends with her. I didn't like Grover but I never tried to intervene in your friendship with him." I state while taking a sip of the cool beverage.

It feels nice on my tongue, especially with it's unique taste.

"You didn't like Grover?" Percy inquiries.

"Nope. He always treated me like a third wheel. I felt like I was his own personal brand of herpes. Plus I felt like he was always trying to split us up. Though now I kinda understand. He didn't see me as a burden because I'm blind. He saw me as a burden because he thought I was human."

"Oh...hmmm I honestly never noticed that." He admits.

I chuckle at how obvious he can be. Grover quickly returns and sets two plates down on the table. He places one in front of me and the other in front of Percy.

"I'll be back." He says before trotting off.

With a smile I tap my foot against the table. The sound waves allow me to see where my plate and utensils are.

"What's on the plate?" I ask.

"The usual. Plus some potato wedges, pancakes, and ham." He states.

With a nod I pick up my fork and dig in. Grover comes back and sits down beside Percy, who's sitting across from me.

"So what are we doing today?" I question after swallowing a mouth full of eggs.

"Well after this you boys have Ancient Greek with other campers your age. Since it's Monday you have to help prepare lunch. Then archery, greek mythology, lunch, letters home..." He pauses for a moment.

"Sorry...I-"

"What's after that?" Percy interjects.

There's a slight crack to his voice as he says it. It makes my heart feel heavy.

"Ummm... Well after that you get free time. After that's diner then volleyball followed by campfire before bedtime." He continues.

"Sounds like fun." I chuckle sarcastically.


	7. Chapter 7

To my shock the week went by in a flash. I found that I'm really good at everything that matters. Classes I'm not shocked I'm good at, I have a brain like a sponge. All I have to do is sit back and focus on the lesson. Honestly I thought I might have trouble with the more physical activities like archery, javelin throwing, sword skills, and monster assault techniques, etc. But I really excel in those areas, more so than even some older campers.

Personally I think it's because I rely more on instinct than they do. When my body wants to do something I let it, no matter how stupid it may seem. On top of that I have harnessed some of my powers enough to use them as an advantage. It really pisses the older kids off but I don't care.

To be totally honest I'm not really trying to make friends here. I just stick with Percy and Grover. Sometimes it's awkward because they hang out with Annabeth but I just ignore her. It's even more awkward when Percy's around his crush, Luke, mainly because Percy acts weird around him. He gets really flirty and is always trying to impress the guy, most of the time a little too much.

"Hey Al, you gunna eat that?" Grover asks.

He's the only one sitting with me today, as Percy is getting some extra sword training from Luke.

"Yeah man. Hey I'm gonna head to my cabin for a bit." I announce.

Standing up I pick up the plate then leave the pavilion and head to Hera's cabin. As soon as I enter I'm greeted by a loud bark. Turning to my bed I find a large mixed PitBull Doberman puppy laying on my bed. It's head is propped up by something very thick. It's red eyes meet mine and I can't help but smile. He's the only half hellhound that doesn't even look like a Mastiff, so Chiron says. I found him while I was in the woods mediating this past Monday.

I heard loud barking which ruined my meditation. Annoyed I went to find the source of the noise. To my shock I saw three massive blackish gray hellhounds growling at a helpless pup. It was scared and to young to really run so it curled up against a mass. I don't know how but I knew it was a corpse, more specifically it's mother's. With a stomp of my foot and a growl the hellhounds run off. The pup peed itself. Feeling bad I took him back to my cabin then took care of him.

In the past three days he's gotten pretty big and usually follows me around. However today I ordered him to see if he could find my duffle bag from the car crash. Stepping closer to the bed I pick up the pup then set him and the plate on the ground. Cujo may only be three days old but he develops rather quickly. He looks like he's at least a month old. Like the fates I see him perfectly but I can also see his eyes.

He's got a compact and muscular rectangular body. Yet it's rather slender and sleek at the same time. His legs are long and skinny but still pretty thick. The back ones are stretched out like a Doberman's, just rounder in the thighs. His face is long broad and fairly flat but he does have a strong elongated muzzle. So he dose look like a PitBull in the face. Though his ears are naturally cropped like a Doberman and he has a stubby tail like a PitBull. All in all he's the perfect mix.

Sitting on my bed I place my hand on the item his head was resting on. It, in fact, is a duffle bag the question is does it belong to me. Opening the bags I see the two wrist cuffs Pluto gave me. Yup this is my bag.

"Good job Cujo." I coo while petting his head.

"Alcides."

My head shoots up and looks at the left corner, near the door. The room is slightly cool now even though the blue fire guy is standing in here.

"Hades?" I ask.

"Yeah." He admits.

"What do you want?" I growl in anger.

I know he sent the minotaur after Sally. Therefore whatever happened to her is his fault, though I don't think he killed her. My only reason being how kind he was to me when we first met. Though he never truly introduced himself I know he was the cop and the nice guy at the Burger king.

"You have every right to be upset with me. But you must understand I was angry and needed leverage." He tries while stepping forward.

"Leverage for what?" I ask.

He sits beside me then places a callused hand on my cheek.

"I wasn't able to be in my demigod children's lives, for their own safety. My immortal children hate me and my wife resents me for cheating on her. You are my chance at a fresh start. Zeus will never claim you as his child because he doesn't want to admit he's a hypocrite."

"How is he a hypocrite?" I ask.

"Did you learn about World War II?"

I nod.

"Well here's something you didn't learn. Hitler and Stalin were my sons. FDR was Zeus's son and Churchill was Poseidon's son."

"So it was pretty much a war between your child and your brother's children?"

"Yes. After that war the three of us vowed never to father anymore heroes, demigod children. They were just too powerful. They were affecting the course of human events too much, causing too much carnage. Zeus and Poseidon forced me to swear on the River Styx to have no more affairs with mortal women."

"Zeus can't even keep his vows to his wife why would anyone trust him to keep an oath?" I question.

"We didn't think of that. However after that Zeus tried to have my younger children, Bianca and Nico di Angelo, killed."

"Why?" I ask.

"The Great Prophecy made by the Oracle of Delphi over seventy years ago."

"What did she foretell?" I inquire.

"A half-blood of the eldest gods. Shall reach sixteen against all odds. And see the world in endless sleep. The hero's soul, cursed blade shall reap. A single choice shall end his days. Olympus to preserve or raze."

"He thought that meant your kids so he tried to kill them."

"Yeah. I retaliated by trying to kill his daughter Thalia, she was twelve at the time. However Zeus showed his favoritism by turning her into that damn tree."

"The gold one that looks like a girl?" I question.

"Yes. Her soul hasn't traveled to the underworld yet so I'm guessing it's trapped in that damn tree." He growls lowly.

"Wait a second my grandma passed the age of sixteen so why didn't anything happen."

"I'm guessing it's because she didn't know she was a Demigod and we didn't know about her. Prophecies seems to only be about Demigods that know they are demigods." He explains.

That doesn't make much sense but I honestly don't think anything involving the gods does.

"So what brought you here?" I ask, changing the subject.

"Oh I heard you were going to be on the frontlines of the capture the flag match today. I figured, since you'll be facing Athena, Apollo, and Hermes' kids, you could use some better armor. So I made you this."

He sets a shirt down on my lap. It feels like spandex but it looks like a metal chest plate with metal arms attached.

"What's it made out of?" I question.

"A rare metal that is light, strong, and hard, so it makes the perfect armor. I personally use it myself. It's covered in a nonflammable fabric and Kevlar. That's why it stretches like spandex. It's enchanted to look like one of those spandex athletic under amour shirts." He explains.

"Thanks."

"Don't thank me yet." He chuckles.

The god places a pair of matching pants on my bed.

"There now you have the full suit. Have fun out there and give them hell."

Hades rubs my hair then disappears in a cloud of smoke. I'll admit it's rather nice gesture. Taking off my shirt and pants I quickly put on the "suit". It fits me like a second skin in a nice way. Moving my arms and legs around is rally easy. Honestly if I didn't know I was wearing it I'd think I'm only in my boxers. With a smirk I pull my clothes back on.

After that I put my gauntlets in my front pocket. Cujo scampers over to me then nudges my leg with his forehead. Leaning down I scratch him behind the ear.

"Alright Cujo I want you to guard the flag. Knock out anyone that you see trying to take it. And be vicious, just don't kill or seriously injure anyone. Understand?"

He licks my face then nuzzles my neck.

"Good boy." I praise.

The conch horn sounds alerting me to the start of the game. As I exit my cabin I hear campers yelling and cheering. I quickly find Clarisse and stand near her.

"You ready for this?" She asks.

Cujo answers with a growls at her causing me to chuckle.

Chiron hammers his hoof on the hard floor of the stage.

"Heroes! You know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed. The banner must be prominently displayed, and have no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but may not be bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed. I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. Arm yourselves!" He announces.

"Here take these." My captain orders.

She pushes a helmet, shield, sword into my chest but I don't take them. Instead I step back and look at Cujo.

"Get me a shirt from my bag that matches my team colors." I order.

A cool thing about hellhounds is they can see in color and they are very intelligent. Well at least Cujo is I've never really spent time with other hellhounds. He scampers off just as the older girl steps forward.

"Are you going to take these or not." She barks.

"Obviously not." I retort.

I really don't like her because of the way she treats Percy. The only reason I'm on her team is because I'm proving a point to Annabeth. She storms off in a huff muttering something about me being a liability. The rest of the team follows her.

"Blue team, forward!" Annabeth yells.

"Good luck." Percy says as he runs towards his team.

Watching him I note the colors of his team mate. Over the past few days I've noticed that each kid has a color that gives away their lineage. All of Athena's kids are olive green like Annabeth. Hermes kids are sky blue while my half siblings are electric blue so I won't confuse the two. Apollo's kids are a bright yellow. They won't be hard to miss so I can knock a few out. There are a lot more colors but I won't be able to keep track of all of them so I'm going to focus on the main three.

Cujo comes back quickly then stands on his hind legs, offering me the shirt in his mouth. I take it then change shirts. Handing him my camp shirt he runs it back to my cabin. Slowly I start to walk into the woods. As I do so I slip on my gauntlets. The pup follows me but with a wave of my hand he scampers off, ready to fulfill his duties as ordered.

Stopping I sniff the air. I smell Percy near the creek so I can't use him to track the flag. Kneeling down I feel the ground. There are plenty of vibrations and masses on their side. However one mass stands out to me. It's a small point in the dirt that doesn't belong so it must be their flag.

Smirking I run towards the mass. The conch horn blows signaling the start of the game. I hear whoops and yells in the woods, the clanking of metal, and kids fighting. The kids all miss me as I run past them. Since they're all making noise I see their colors easily. Whenever I see sky blue, bright yellow, or olive green people I hit them in the temple of the head with my cane. The blows aren't hard but the force coupled with the metal of their helmet either knock them out or disorients them. That's one of the cons of wearing a metal helmet, it does more damage than the actual hit.

I make it to the creek in no time then leap over it. This time there are alot more crimson red people. Those are Ares spawns and they seem to be drawing the attention of most of our opponents. So it's easy for me to get to the flag. Taking it in my hand I lift it from the dirt.

Ok I can't just run back cause they'll see it. I have to come up with a plan. As if on cue the small hole gets bigger. My instincts are telling me to jump in so I do. The hole above me closes as a tunnel forms the way I came. I follow the tunnel until I'm pushed up by the dirt. Looking around I see a group of Ares spawns crowding around an ocean blue figure.

"Give him a haircut, grab his hair. " Clarisse yells.

With a loud roar I race towards them and tackle Clarisse across the lake. There are snarls behind me as I hold the pole to her throat.

"Percy is my friend. If you mess with him then you mess with me." I growl before dropping the blue flag on her chest then taking off my cuffs.

Turning I find a group of hellhounds snarling and snapping at the rest of Clarisse's gang. The dogs are backing them towards the creek while Percy and a few other members of his team watch.

"And if you mess with me you mess with them." I add pointing to the dogs.

With a flick of my wrist the hounds race off. Suddenly some reddish orange kids rush over to me and heft me onto their shoulders.

"Damn I was so close." Luke groans as he passes.

Everyone on my team cheers except for Clarisse and her goons. They carry me out of the woods but something is compelling me to go back.

"Hey guys put me down. I have to check on Percy."

The two boys holding me groan and lower me slower. As soon as my feet touch the ground I race back to the creek. A howl ripped through the forest causing me to pick up my pace. When I get back a hellhound is lunging at Percy. Before I can order it to stop a bolt of lightning hits me. My body gives way under the immense pain. I curl up and scream. Lifting my head slightly I see Cujo tackle the bigger hound. However the other dog is bigger and stronger so it shakes him off immediately. It races back towards my only true friend. Without even thinking I lift up may hands and thrust them forwards, palms facing the beast. A powerful battle cry forces it's way out of my lungs. The electricity from the bolt passes through me and shoots out of my hands. It hits the beast causing it to yelp and seize.

Suddenly the lightning stops hitting me. Using the rest of the currents still in me I keep shocking the hound till finally it explodes. That's great cause I'm running low on energy. So low in fact I collapse on my hands again. My eyes close as my heart stutters and slows causing a pain to shoot through my left arm. Resting my head on the dirt I grip my left peck with my right hand.

"ALCIDES!" Multiple voices call.

A wet nose rubs my cheek then a tongue licks my cheek. Strong hands grab me and lift me up bridal style.

"Al are you ok?" Chiron asks softly.

"Take me to my bed, please." I groan.

"Are you sure?" He asks.

I nod as we leave the woods.

"Don't worry Chiron, I'll stay with him." Percy pipes.

"Alright. Annabeth get him some Ambrosia. Luke get everyone back to their cabin." The centaur orders.

He suddenly stops then turns to Percy.

"By the way Percy congratulations on being claimed." He says.

Soon he starts trotting again till he reaches my abode. He sets me down on the bed then leaves the cabin.

"Thanks for saving my ass, twice." Percy says while uniting my shoes.

"No problem." I groan through gritted teeth.

"Are you ok Al?" He asks.

"Yeah I'm fine. It's just a minor heart attack. It will be over eventually I just gotta bare the pain." I admit.

"That sounds really serious."

I shake my head as he starts taking off my pants. Suddenly hooves trample in.

"I just heard what happened are you two ok?" Grover gasps.

"He's having a heart attack." Percy announces rather panicked.

"A HEART ATTACK!? MR. D! MR. D!" Grover starts to call.

"I'm fine!" I hiss.

As the old jerk walks in Percy has finished stripping me so I'm only in the under suit.

"What is it?" He asks.

"Al's having a heart attack." Grover announces.

"Of course I am I just got hit by lightning." I growl.

Dionysus sighs and walks away.

"Satyrs so over dramatic." The god grumbles.

"Grover help me get him under the covers." Percy calls.

The two of them struggle to lift me so Grover calls in Luke. He takes Grover's place allowing the satyr to pull back the covers. They set me down then tuck me in. Percy strokes my sweat drenched hair pushing it back to join the rest of my hair. As my eyes close Cujo strolls in then jumps on the bed and lays beside me.


	8. Chapter 8

The next morning I felt like shit. I was sluggish while going through my morning routine. Then the sun came out and I was filled to the brim with energy and strengthen. By the end of the night Hades and Mother Hera claimed me. Her claiming me weirded Dionysus out but he couldn't really say anything about.

Percy didn't have as great a day. Since his father claimed him he was moved to his father's cabin, alone. He sits at his father's table alone. On top of that the other campers steered clear of us as much as possible. Hell members of cabin eleven are too nervous to have sword class with us. Especially after what I did to Clarisse in the woods. However Charles Beckendorf, the head counselor of Cabin 9, has made it his personal mission to "train" me but I'm not sure why. Percy is training with Luke one on one.

Both older boys are hard on us but that's fine. When it comes to dueling I'm not that bad. So it's usually me schooling him. Unfortunately Percy's not really good at fighting out of water so he's having a harder time. Luke refuses to go easy on him because he knows the monsters won't.

I've been avoiding Annabeth as much as I possibly can. Though she still teaches me Greek in the mornings. Luckily she's been distracted lately. She keeps muttering stuff that doesn't make sense.

Clarisse and the Ares kids have stopped messing with Percy. Although his need for more contact with the other demigods is stirring him up. So much so he would actually prefer it if she hit him. Hmm speaking of Percy I haven't seen him since breakfast, I wonder what he's doing. Oh well I'll hang out with him tomorrow.

Sitting on my bed I sharpen my sword with a stone Charlie let me borrow. Cujo is chewing up a stake bone at the end of my bed. By tomorrow he'll have chewed it up enough to actually eat it. Suddenly my door flies open.

"BOYS AND MOTHER STILL MISSING AFTER FREAK CAR ACCIDENT BY EILEEN SMYTHE

Sally Jackson, son Percy, and newly adopted son Alcides are still missing one week after their mysterious disappearance. The family's badly burned '78 Camaro was discovered last Saturday on a north Long Island road upside down with the windows shattered. The car had flipped and skidded for several hundred feet before exploding.

Mother and sons had gone for a weekend vacation to Montauk, but left hastily, under mysterious circumstances. Small traces of blood were found in the car and near the scene of the wreck, but there were no other signs of the missing Jacksons. Residents in the rural area reported seeing nothing unusual around the time of the accident.

Ms. Jackson's husband, Gabe Ugliano, claims that his stepson, Percy Jackson, is a troubled child who has been kicked out of numerous schools and has expressed violent tendencies in the past. When asked about Alcides Gabe said he is his blind nephew, who he and Sally adopted after his brother died. He also mentioned that the two boys were very close.

Police would not say whether son Percy is a suspect in his mother and adopted brother's disappearance, but they have not ruled out foul play. Below are recent pictures of Sally Jackson, Alcides, and Percy. Police urge anyone with information to call the following toll-free crime-stoppers hotline." Percy reads before he throws the paper on the ground.

He then flops on my bed.

"That jerk! I can't believe he said all that stuff about me." He seethes.

"He's an asshole." I deadpan as I go back to my previous task.

"I know but still."

I stop sharpening the blade and put it back in its sheath.

"Percy what did you think would happen?" I ask kindly.

He doesn't say anything. I gently place my hand on his shoulder.

"Let that go ok? We're not going to be in the real world of a while. Besides as soon as we get out I'll find a payphone and call the hotline. I'll pretend to be Sally and tell them we were running away from Gabe. We got into an accident then left the scene hoping they would think we died. Then I'd ask that they close the case as we're starting a new life and don't want Gabe involved in it."

"Wow...That's a pretty good plan." He admits.

"Yeah it is. Now I'm about to turn in. Either you can leave and keep freaking out over this. Or you can get under the covers and go to sleep here." I offer.

"I chose the latter." He states while getting under the covers.

I quickly join him then clap my hands twice. Even though I can't see I know the lights are off. Percy turns so his back is towards me, like usual. While I simply lay flat on my back.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

A loud clap of thunder wakes me from my blank dream. Well it wasn't blank, I was still in Hera's garden, she just wasn't there. Yesterday night she told me something big was going on so she'll be MIA for a bit. Personally I don't mind, it gives me more time to train.

Suddenly Percy jerks upright.

"Another bad dream?" I ask.

He nods then lays back down. As I start to get up there's a clopping sound at the door. It's like a hoof knocking on the threshold.

"Come in?" I call.

"Mr. D wants to see you." Grover announce as he trots in.

When he notices Percy in my bed he adds a quick, "Both of you."

"Why?" Percy inquiries as he starts to get up.

"He wants to kill... I mean, I'd better let him tell you. "

With a sigh I pull on a long sleeved shirt and some thicker pants. Percy quickly runs to his cabin to throw on some shoes as I slip on my shoes. When I finish getting dressed I lightly tap Cujo on the bum with my cane.

"Come on little guy, up and at 'em."

He stretches then follows me out the cabin. We meet up with Percy and Grover out side. Percy's really nervous. I think it's because his father wasn't supposed to have him. He's probably worried the god will kill him. He asks Grover about the weather but I barley pay that any mind. Instead I wonder if I'm going to have time to eat breakfast.

Oddly enough it doesn't take us that long to get to the big house. We walk up the steps then enter. My dear sweet brother is sitting at the Same table he was sat at when I went off on him. Chiron is sitting across from him in his fake wheel-chair. There are two hooded figures also sitting at the table playing a card game with them.

"Well, well, our little celebrity and the rebel." The god says.

"Come closer. And don't expect for me to kneel to you, mortal, just because old Barnacle-Beard is your father. Or because we are half siblings."

I love how he makes jabs at us, cause it means I can jab back. As I open my mouth to speak a net of lightning flashes across the clouds. Thunder shakes the windows of the house.

"Blah, blah, blah, " Dionysus said.

Grover cowers by the rail outside, his hooves clopping back and forth.

"If I had my way, I would cause your molecules to erupt in flames. We'd sweep up the ashes and be done with a lot of trouble. But Chiron seems to feel this would be against my mission at this cursed camp: to keep you little brats safe from harm." The god comments nonchalantly.

"Why are you the god of sympathy when you're such a hateful jerk?" I ask.

"Spontaneous combustion is a form of harm, Mr. D," Chiron pipes before Dionysus can respond to my question.

"Nonsense. The boy wouldn't feel a thing. Nevertheless, I've agreed to restrain myself I'm thinking of turning you into a dolphin instead, sending you back to your father." My brother insists.

"Seriously I don't get it, I just don't." I mutter with a shake of my head.

"Mr. D-" Chiron warns.

"Oh, all right there's one more option. But it's deadly foolishness. " Dionysus says while he stands.

As he does the hooded players' cards drop to the table.

"I'm off to Olympus for the emergency meeting. If the boy is still here when I get back, I'll turn him into an Atlantic bottlenose. Do you understand? And Perseus Jackson, if you're at all smart, you'll see that's a much more sensible choice than what Chiron feels you must do. " Dionysus relents.

"Clarisse has more sympathy in her pinky toe than this jerk." I comment.

"Boy I will...You know what just take this." He growls while folding two of his playing cards.

He tosses one to me and I catch it. Leaving the other on the table he snaps his fingers and disappears. Good riddance. Looking at the card I see nothing.

"It's a joker." Percy informs.

"Thanks."

"Sit, boys, please. And Grover. " Chiron prompts.

We do.

"Tell me, Percy what did you make of the hellhound?" The Centaur inquires

"It scared me, sir. If Al hadn't killed it, I'd be dead. " Percy admits.

"Al how did you feel while being shocked?"

"It hurt but it made me feel stronger." I reply.

"You'll both meet worse, Percy. Far worse, before you're done. But I hope that strength you felt, Al, will help."

"Done ... With what?" Percy asks.

"Your quest, of course. Will you both accept it?" He explains.

"Um, sir, you haven't told us what it is yet. " Percy pipes.

"Well, that's the hard part, the details." Chiron says.

"Poseidon and Zeus are fighting. Hades is also pissed but he'd rather watch Olympus burn then intervene." I interject.

"Yeah over something valuable ... Something that was stolen, aren't they?" The other demigod adds.

"How did you two know that?" The creature questions.

"Simple logic. Hades keeps trying to kill Percy, the son of Poseidon. And every time I try to help him I'm hit with a lightning bolt, which is the symbol of Zeus's power. Since Zeus and Poseidon usually work in tandem, when it comes to Hades, it's rather odd that Zeus would go against him. So they must be fighting over something. But it's not Percy's existence."

"How do you know that?" Grover asks.

"Zeus has no right to order a hit on any child born after the big three's oath. Since he, himself, broke the vow **AND** saved Thalia from death. As for Hades, well Thalia was the only mortal I've ever heard of him trying to kill. Which means he only did it to get revenge on Zeus for killing his favorite mistress and attempting to kill his kids." I answer.

"Percy? How did you know?"

"The weather since Christmas has been weird, like the sea and the sky are fighting. Then I talked to Annabeth, and she'd overheard something about a theft. And ... I've also been having these dreams. " He explains.

"I knew it!" Grover calls.

"Hush, satyr," Chiron orders.

"But it is their quest! It must be!" Grover states while bouncing on his hooves.

He seems really excited about this.

"Only the Oracle can determine that. Nevertheless you are both correct. Your fathers are having their worst quarrel in centuries. They are fighting over something valuable that was stolen. To be precise: a lightning bolt. "

"A what?" Percy asks with a nervous laugh.

"The symbol of my father's power and his weapon of choice." I explain.

"How did you-"

"Unlike you I paid attention in Mr. Brunner's Latin class." I interject before my cousin can finish his question.

"Yes a two-foot-long cylinder of high-grade celestial bronze, capped on both ends with god-level explosives. To be more specific." Chiron adds.

"Oh." Percy gasps.

"It's referred to as Zeus's master bolt. The first weapon made by the Cyclopes for the war against the Titans, the bolt that sheered the top off Mount Etna and hurled Kronos from his throne; the master bolt, which packs enough power to make mortal hydrogen bombs look like firecrackers. "

"And it's missing?" Percy asks.

"Stolen, " Chiron answers.

"By who?" I question.

"By whom." The teacher corrects before answering, "By Percy. "

My jaw hits the floor.

"At least that's what Zeus thinks. During the winter solstice, at the last council of the gods, Zeus and Poseidon had an argument. The usual nonsense: 'Mother Rhea always liked you best, ' Air disasters are more spectacular than sea disasters, ' etcetera. Afterward, Zeus realized his master bolt was missing, taken from the throne room under his very nose. He immediately blamed Poseidon. Now, a god cannot usurp another god's symbol of power directly-that is forbidden by the most ancient of divine laws. But Zeus believes your father convinced a human hero to take it. "

"But I didn't-" Percy tries.

"Patience and listen, child, Zeus has good reason to be suspicious. The forges of the Cyclopes are under the ocean, which gives Poseidon some influence over the makers of his brother's lightning. Zeus believes Poseidon has taken the master bolt, and is now secretly having the Cyclopes build an arsenal of illegal copies, which might be used to topple Zeus from his throne. The only thing Zeus wasn't sure about was which hero Poseidon used to steal the bolt. Now Poseidon has openly claimed you as his son. You were in New York over the winter holidays. You could easily have snuck into Olympus. Zeus believes he has found his thief. "

"But I've never even been to Olympus! Zeus is crazy!" Percy stammers.

"He's not crazy he's just paranoid, like all greedy kings. Take Kronos, for instance, he swallowed his kids because he was paranoid they would over throw him. Or Hitler, he waged war on Stalin even though they were allies because he feared Stalin would attack him. Hell fact Stalin had secret services to kill his secret services." I pipe.

"But his kids did over throw him. The fact that Hitler fought the Russians hindered his army. And didn't one of Stalin's secret services assassinate him?" Grover chimes.

"Yes the gods killed Kronos because he swallowed them. The Russians hindered Hitler's army because he attacked them. And people think Stalin was poisoned, which lead to his cerebral hemorrhage, because his officers were afraid he'd kill them. Though that's just speculation there was never proof of it. You see Percy paranoid people with power make rash decision to keep their power. These decisions usually lead to their down fall." I reply.

"Well Poseidon has tried to unseat Zeus before. I believe that was question thirty-eight on your final exam..." The Centaur says.

"Honestly Chiron I think they were just in that. Zeus was and still is abusing his power. Besides they didn't try to dethrone him they tried to show him the error of his ways. Kinda like when you put a two year old in time out. The only problem is Zeus refuses to see his own faults. So he spun the situation so they looked bad. It's exactly like what Hephaestus did to Hera, when he chained her to her throne for weeks. Do you see her holding a grudge? No. She learned a lesson, Zeus not so much."

"He has a point." Grover says under his breath.

"Be that as it may Zeus has never trusted Poseidon since. Of course, Poseidon denies stealing the master bolt. He took great offense at the accusation. The two have been arguing back and forth for months, threatening war. And now, you've come along-the proverbial last straw."

"I'm just a kid!" Percy yells.

"Like I said rash decisions. I'm telling you if Zeus was more leave headed he could come up with a timeline. When did he last have his lightning bolt and what happened around that time. Have a thorough investigation before just placing the blame. Cause now there may just be a war that we may not be able to stop." I state.

"Poseidon, my dad, he didn't really have this master bolt stolen. Did he?"

"I very much doubt it. Your father isn't really the thief type." I comfort.

"Most thinking observers would agree that thievery is not Poseidon's style. But the Sea God is too proud to try convincing Zeus of that. Zeus has demanded that Poseidon return the bolt by the summer solstice. That's June twenty-first, ten days from now. Poseidon wants an apology for being called a thief by the same date. I hoped that diplomacy might prevail, that Hera or Demeter or Hestia would make the two brothers see sense. But your arrival has inflamed Zeus's temper. Now neither god will back down. Unless someone intervenes, unless the master bolt is found and returned to Zeus before the solstice, there will be war. And do you know what a full-fledged war would look like, Percy?"

"Bad." He answers.

"World ending?" I pipe.

"Precisely, Al. And you, Percy Jackson, would be the first to feel Zeus's wrath. "

"So we either kill Zeus, die, or get the lightning bolt." I state.

"I think I chose finding the bolt." Percy says.

I nod in agreement.

"What better peace offering, than to have the son of Poseidon return Zeus's property?" Chiron chimes.

"If my dad doesn't have it, where is the thing?"

"I believe I know. Part of a prophecy I had years ago ... Well, some of the lines make sense to me, now. But before I can say more, you must officially take up the quest. You must seek the counsel of the Oracle. " Chiron informs.

"Why can't you tell us where the bolt is beforehand?" I ask.

"Because if I did, you would be too afraid to accept the challenge. "

"Good reason." Percy chokes.

"You agree then?"

"I'm in if Percy's in."

"Alright. It's better than being turned into a dolphin. " Percy agrees.

"Then it's time you boys consulted the Oracle. Go upstairs to the attic. When you come back down, assuming you're still sane, we will talk more. "

Percy and I stand then walk towards the steps. I let him go first up the four flights of stairs. He opens the trap door that leads to the attic then starts up the ladder. I follow him up to the warm room. It smells like mildew, rotten wood, and...snakes. Ok that's really weird.

Percy takes my hand and leads me towards the back. In a chair in front of us sits a human female body shriveled to a husk. She's wearing a tie dye sundress, lots of beaded necklaces, and a headband over long black hair. The skin of her face is thin and leathery over her skull, and her eyes are glassy white slits, as if the real ones had been replaced by marbles; she's been dead a long, long time.

Looking at her sends chills up my back. Suddenly she sits up on her stool and opens her mouth. A green mist seeps past the mummy's lips, coiling over the floor in thick tendrils, hissing like twenty thousand snakes. I squeeze Percy's hand so he can't run. Inside my head I hear a voice coiling around my brain: _I am the spirit of Delphi, speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python. Approach, seekers, and ask._

Percy squeezes my hand. I can tell he wants to make a run for it. Hell I wanna run to but I can't. If I leave so will he then tho war will happen and Zeus will kill him. With a sigh I force myself to take a deep breath.

The mummy isn't alive. She is some kind of gruesome vessel for something else, the power that is now swirling around us in the green mist. But its presence doesn't feel evil, like our demonic math teacher Mrs. Dodds. It feels more like the Three Fates we saw knitting the yarn outside the highway: ancient, powerful, and definitely not human. But not particularly interested in killing us, either.

"What is our destiny?" We ask simultaneously.

The mist swirls more thickly, collecting right in front of us. Suddenly there were four men sitting around the table, playing cards.

If possible Percy grips my hand tighter. I stroke the back of his hand with my thumb. He relaxes a bit.

The first turns toward us and speaks in the rasping voice of the Oracle: _You shall go west, and face the one who has turned._

A guy on the right looks up and said in the same voice: _You shall see the truth in a broken heart of rage, and leave a friend to die._

The guy on the left threw in two poker chips, then says: _You shall find what was stolen, only one will see it safely returned._

Finally the last guy delivers the worst line of all: _And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end._

The figures begin to dissolve. At first I am too stunned to say anything. But honestly I have nothing to say. Percy asks questions but they go unanswered.

The tail of the mist snake disappears into the mummy's mouth. She reclines back so she's seated the way she was when we came in. Her mouth closes tight, as if it hadn't been open in a hundred years. The attic is silent again, abandoned, nothing but a room full of junk.

I get the feeling that we could stand here until we had cobwebs and we wouldn't learn anything else.

"Come on our audience with the Oracle is over." I announce.

We quietly leave the attic and return to the main room.

"Well?" Chiron asks as we retake our original seats.

"She said we would retrieve what was stolen." I announces.

"That's great!" Grover pipes.

"What did the Oracle say exactly? This is important." Chiron presses.

"She ... She said we would go west and face someone who had turned. We would retrieve what was stolen but only one will see it safely returned." Percy says.

"I knew it, " Grover cheers.

"Anything else?" Our former Latin teacher asks.

I leave it up to Percy weather we tell him the rest or not.

"No, that's about it. " he lies.

Chiron sighs then says, "Very well, boys. But know this: the Oracle's words often have double meanings. Don't dwell on them too much. The truth is not always clear until events come to pass. "

I get the feeling he knows we is holding back something bad, and he is trying to make us feel better. But how can you make someone feel better when they know they're going to fail and leave a friend to die.

"So where do we go? Who's in the west?" I ask.

"Ah, think, boys, if Zeus and Poseidon weaken each other in a war, who stands to gain?"

"Somebody else who wants to take over?" Percy guesses.

"Yes, quite. Someone who harbors a grudge, who has been unhappy with his lot since the world was divided eons ago, whose kingdom would grow powerful with the deaths of millions. Someone who hates his brothers for forcing him into an oath to have no more children, an oath that both of them have now broken."

Hades? No it can't be him. Although yesterday he told me he needed leverage, which is why he took Sally, I don't think he did this. A corpse can't be leverage so she must still be alive. He must be holding her hostage but why? Why Would Hades take Sally? He's the one that's been trying to hurt Percy, but why? It's not because he has the bolt, if he did he would have made a major play. Killing Percy is more personal. There are way more pieces to this then they're seeing. But that's ok, I like working on puzzles alone.

I've got the border; Zeus and Poseidon are fighting because someone stole Zeus's master bolt. The inner border is filled; Percy and I have to get the bolt from the thief but only one of us will give it to Zeus leaving the other to die. Now for the filler pieces. I've got a Hades cluster but I don't know where it goes, what is his role in this? I've got blood; someone is going to die but who? Is it the mystery thief? Percy? Me? Grover? Or a god? There will be a failure, which could have to do with the death or...Sally. Will she be dead or alive when we get to the underworld?

"Luke and Annabeth." Percy says confidently.

"What?" I question.

"Sorry Al, I know you have issues with Annabeth but she's really good with battle plans. And Luke's an amazing swordsmen." Percy defends.

I glare at him then look at Cujo.

"Whatever just keep her away from us."

"Sure." He agrees.

He really won't but it's whatever.

"I'll pack my duffle bag." I announce before leaving.

Thanks for always having my back Percy.


	9. Chapter 9

After I packed Grover brought me to the camp store so I could get money. I withdrew two thousand dollars. Half of it I traded in for golden drachmas. These coins are as big as Girl Scout cookies with faces stamped on one side and the empire state building on the other.

Chiron says the coins might come in handy for non-mortal transactions-whatever that meant. He gives Annabeth, Luke, Percy, and I each a canteen of nectar and a Ziploc bag full of ambrosia squares. It's only to be used in emergencies, like if we get seriously hurt. It's god food, Chiron reminded us. It will cure us of almost any injury, but is lethal to mortals. Too much of it would make a half-blood very, very feverish. An overdose would burn us up, literally.

Annabeth brings her magic Yankees cap. Apparently it was a twelfth-birthday present from her mom. Percy says it turns her invisible, like my gauntlets. She also brought a book on famous classical architecture, written in Ancient Greek, to read when she gets bored. As well as a long bronze knife, hidden in her shirt sleeve. I'm sure the knife will get us busted the first time we go through a metal detector, bur so will my cane.

Luke packed his shield, which acts as a bracelet till activated. His dad gave it to him after he came to the camp. He also brings a half Celestial bronze and half tempered steel sword called Backbiter. It was also a presents from his father, given to him on his fourteenth birthday. Hephaestus made it of two strong but opposite metals. Luke says that's what gives it it's "bite". What really intrigued me was his black converse that have small wings on either side. These he stole from his father's closest before he ran away. They stretch so they always fit him, no matter how big his feet get.

Grover is wearing his fake feet and his pants to pass as a human. He also has on a green rasta style cap. He says when it rains his curly hair flattens and you could just see the tips of his horns. Percy thinks he looks like a total stoner. His backpack is full of scrap metal and apples to snack on. In his pocket are a set of reed pipes. His daddy goat carved them for him, even though he only knows two songs: Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 12 and Hilary Duff's "So Yesterday, " both of which sound pretty bad on reed pipes. I swear when he played them for me my ears started to bleed.

They wave bye to the campers while I hike up Half-Blood Hill to the tall pine tree that used to be Thalia, my half sister. Chiron is waiting for in his wheelchair. Next to him stands an odd colored mist that has eyes all over it. Wow I dare someone to try and sneak up on that.

"This is Argus, he will drive you into the city, and, er, well, keep an eye on things." My former Latin teacher explains.

I hear footsteps behind us. It's the rest of the group and some of Annabeth and Luke's siblings. With a sigh I follow Argus to our ride. He fiddles with his car keys then unlocks all the doors so I get into the passenger seat. Cujo jumps in then curls up at my feet.

"You're gunna need a collar for that mutt." Argus says.

"Yeah I know." I sigh as the others get in the back.

The pup looks up at me then licks my hand. Argus starts to drive us out of the countryside and into the city, I'm guessing western Long Island. Looking out at the clouds of mist I can't help but feel at peace. My home is where the noise is and what's noisier than a city?

"So far so good, ten miles and not a single monster. " Percy says.

"It's bad luck to talk that way, seaweed brain." Annabeth snaps.

"Remind me again why do you hate me so much?" He asks.

"Because she's a self righteous bitch." I pipe.

"I don't hate you. And I'm not a self righteous bitch." She hisses.

"Could've fooled me." Percy and I say in unison.

"Look ... We're just not supposed to get along, okay? Our parents are rivals." She explains.

"That's so stupid. Why would you base whether or not you like someone on the way your parents feel about each other? Especially when you're just a pawn for them to manipulate."

"I'm not a pawn, my mother loves me."

"I doubt you know what a mother's love truly is. A mother's love is shown when she stands in front of a monster twice her size and ten times more powerful to protect you. It's when she is willing to fight and die for you. When she is willing to give up everything just to hold you and make sure your happy. That is the true love of a mother. A love that Percy and I know well. Athena doesn't love you Annabeth, because gods don't love their pawns. They just favor the ones that could be assets to them."

"He has a point. Sally Jackson did put up with her husband for Percy. And she faced the you know what." Grover pipes.

"What do you mean?" Percy questions.

"Well your stepfather smells so repulsively human he could mask the presence of any demigod. As soon as I took a whiff inside his Camaro, I knew: Gabe has been covering your scent for years. If you hadn't lived with him every summer, you probably would've been found by monsters a long time ago. Your mom stayed with him to protect you. She was a smart lady. So she must've loved him a lot to put up with that guy, so Al is right." The satyr elaborates.

"How did your mom show you love?" Luke asks.

"She protected me with her life. Every encounter I ever had with a monster, from when I was a baby to the age of six, she fought it. No matter how big or scary she would fight it to protect me. Once, after an attack, she took me in her arms and said; "I would stop at nothing to keep you safe, always remember that." I was two years old but I still remember it clearly."

The car goes silent just as Argus stops.

"And with that I bid you all adieu." He says.

I open the door and climb out with Cujo behind me. When he's out of the vehicle I close the door. Grover and Percy walk over to me while Luke and Annabeth keep their distance. Argus drives off with a quick good luck.

"Hey Al there's a pet store across the street. Maybe you can get Cujo a leash and collar over there." Grover says.

With a nod I give Percy some of my money.

"Buy our tickets." I order.

"Alright." He agrees.

As they walk away I look at the other side of the road. I can hear the animals in the shop creating a gray mist. Inside is blue flame with a black shadow around it; Hades. Cautiously I cross the street and enter the shop.

"Alcides, baby, I knew you'd come by eventually." He says.

His gravelly voice is higher and lazier then usual.

"Why'd you steel Zeus's lightning bolt?" I ask.

"What makes you think I did it?" He asks in a really offended tone.

"To gain power." I deadpan.

"I would never do that, unlike my siblings I keep _**my**_ word." The god states as he snaps at Cujo.

Suddenly a armor plate wraps around the dogs chest. A strong leash made out of metal cords float towards me. I slip my hand through the loop and squeeze. It quickly turns to a metal gauntlet around my hand and wrist.

"How does that feel?" Hades asks.

"Perfect. So if you didn't steal the bolt then who did?"

"Honestly I don't know and I don't care."

"How can you not care, this could cause a war?"

"I don't care because your little friend stole my Helm of Darkness." He accuses.

"What do you mean, Percy never stole anything." I defend.

"Well my Helm is missing and I'm really pissed. So pissed I am holding his mother hostage." He admits.

"I knew it. You stealing the bolt was to easy and if a minotaur crushes a human the human doesn't turn into dust." I say, more to my self than him.

"If the boy brings me my Helm I will release her. If not I will place her in purgatory."

Before I can say anything he is gone. Sally's alive. I cant help but smile as I exit the abandoned shop. Crossing the street I quickly make my way back to the other Demigods. Just as I get there the bus pulls up.

The driver says nothing about Cujo as we pass. The few people on the bus part like the red sea as I approach. No one ever wants to upset the disabled kid. We sit in the back. I take the window seat and the pup hops in my lap. Percy sites beside me. Luke sits between him and Annabeth. Leaving Grover with the seat by the bathroom. Due to his weak bladder I don't think he minds.

"Hades doesn't have the lightning bolt." I inform in Latin, just incase someone's listening.

"How do you know?" Luke asks.

"I just spoke with him and he told me he didn't."

"What makes you think he's not lying?" Annabeth asks.

"My grandfather was the son of Apollo. A god who has the ability to tell if someone's lying, you put two and two together."

"It's true Al's a walking lie detector." Percy says.

"So who took it?" Grover asks.

"I don't know. But I do know he's got Sally."

Before Percy says anything I place my hand over his mouth. Thank goodness I did because he was about to yell something, mostly what.

"Why?" Grover asks.

"He thinks Percy stole his Helm of Darkness so he took her. Says he'll give her back if we find the Helm."

"Wait so someone stole Zeus's bolt and Hade's Helm?" Luke inquiries.

"Yeah. I'm guessing it was the same person. They want this war to be as destructive as possible. What better way than to pit the big three against each other."

Percy pushes my hand down so he can ask, "Who would want the gods to go to war?"

I ponder his question then it hits me.

"A Demigod." I gasp.

"Why would a Demigod want the Gods to go to war." Luke asks.

"Revenge. I'm guessing it's a older demigod that probably had monsters attacking him or her constantly."

"So their parent must be an Olympian God, and a powerful one. They are the ones attacked the most." Grover interjects.

"Yeah. She or he most likely watched everyone they care about die gruesome deaths. All at the hands of monsters. They felt guilty, probably still do, but more than anything they blame their godly parent. Given the strategic planning I'd say they're a child of Athena."

"What makes you think that?" Annabeth questions defensively.

"One she's the goddess of Battle Strategy. Therefore her demigod children are extremely strategic when it comes to battle. Two a child of Ares wouldn't be able to stay out of the fight, or not use the weapons for their self. Three Zeus currently has no demigod child over eighteen." I explain.

"Good points." Luke admits hesitantly.

"Anyway they feel that Athena could have protected them and their family members. This caused an intense hatred for the gods, as none of them actually protect their kids. I'm guessing they were at Camp half-blood but was never claimed, which fueled their fire. I doubt they're working alone. The Gods have more enemies then friends."

"More demigods?" Percy inquiries.

"Yes but also another powerful being. If I had to guess I'd say monsters and or Titans."

Annabeth, Grover, and Luke bust out laughing.

"What's so funny?" Percy questions.

"Al that's crazy no demigod would work with monsters or Titans. Plus I doubt a demigod would ever want to cause a war of this magnitude. All of mankind could be destroyed." Annabeth chuckles.

"They would if they feel they have nothing to loose. See that's the thing about hate, it clouds a person's judgment. Just ask the Germans, or the Hutu, or better yet ask the gods. They know hate better than anyone in the world. Trust me when I say this is just the beginning of a bloody war."

Suddenly the air shifts and carries a bad smell towards me. Looking out my window I see three monstrous hags. They all look like Mrs. Dodds but scarier, if possible. I quickly grab my bag then pull out my wrist cuffs.

"Percy put these on **NOW**!" I order under my breath.

He can tell by the look on my face not to argue.

"What's wrong?" Luke asks.

"We have company." I explain vaguely.

When he's finished putting the magical items on I see him. He's lanky with jet black hair, cropped short, and pale skin. His facial features are strong, yet soft. He turns so that I can see his bright sea green eyes. All in all he's a handsome boy, skinny but handsome.

I smile at him then look at Cujo. Snapping my fingers I point to my friend's lap causing him to move into it. As he does the hags walk onto the bus. Percy sees them and starts to shrink in his seat.

"You are invisible to them now, only I can see you." I whisper.

They sit in the front row, right behind the driver. The two in the aisle seats cross their legs over the walkway, making an X. It is casual enough, but it sends a clear message: nobody leaves.

The bus pulls out of the station, and we head through the slick streets of Manhattan.

"She didn't stay dead long. I thought you said they could be dispelled for a lifetime." Percy says, voice quivering slightly.

"I said if you're lucky," Annabeth retorts.

"You're obviously not." Luke adds glumly.

"All three of them? Di immortales!" Grover whimpers.

"It's okay, it's just the Furies. The three worst monsters from the Underworld. No problem. No problem. We'll just slip out the windows." Annabeth rambles.

"Did you say from the Underworld?" I ask.

"Yes." She growls.

With a smirk I stand up and step into the aisle. As I do we enter the tunnel, causing the bus to get dark. I must admit its rather eerie and quiet.

"I need to use the restroom." Mrs. Dodds states.

"So do I," says the second sister.

"So do I," says the third sister.

They all start coming down the aisle. I stop between them and the other demigods. Cujo runs over and starts to growl at them. The women stop. Thinking over my life I can't help but get mad, really really fuckin mad. Looking up at them I'm able to make eye contact.

"Leave now Furies." I growl.

The three hags hiss in anger. Yet in their eyes I see fear.

"Step aside, blind boy." Mrs. Dodds orders.

With a deep growl I grab her throat, causing her skin starts to steam. She to let out a monstrous roar in agony.

"I am directly related to your lord, Hades, therefore I to am your lord. So either you hags obey me or rot in the darkest corner of Purgatory." I threaten.

Cujo barks viciously causing them to jump back, in fear.

"What do you wish of us, young lord?" Mrs. Dodds asks.

"Go back to Hades and tell him we are on our way. Also tell him to stop sending monsters after us."

"Of course young lord." They agree simultaneously.

The women turn then walk back to their seats. Turning I walk back to my own seat then retake it.

"What happened?" Annabeth asks.

"I ordered them off." I reply.

"How?" Luke inquiries.

"One of the perks of being directly related to Hades is I have power over monsters that serve him." I explain.

"Cool." Percy says while taking off my leather cuffs.

He hands them to me causing me to smile. However my smile soon flattens as I sense a surge of energy in the air. It's a feeling that I've only felt twice. Before I didn't understand but now I do.

"Shit!" I grumble as I put on my cuffs.

Jumping up I race to the front of the bus. As I reach the front a loud crack sounds. It's on my right so I grab the wheel and roughly turn it left. The bus jerks just as a bolt of lightning hits our previous spot. There's another crack so I turn the wheel right. The bolt just narrowly misses us again.

The driver fights me for control of the wheel, which only makes it harder to avoid the bolts.

"MOTHER HELP ME!"

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HPOV

My heart seizes as I hear Alcides's plea. Standing from my bench in the garden I race into the throne room. Zeus is ranting loudly in a rather incoherent manor. Ares, Hephaestus, and Dionysus are holding Poseidon back. Artemis, Apollo, and Hestia are blocking Athena. Hercules has Hermes in a bear hug. While Aphrodite and Demeter sit back and watch.

 _"MOTHER!"_ The child calls again.

I summon a strong gust of wind then aim it at Zeus. When it hits him he goes flying into the other fighting gods.

"GO MY CHILD, HURRY!"

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APOV

Hearing Mother Hera's words I pull the emergency break. The bus wails then spins in a full circle. It finally stops, well it is stopped some trees. The the doors fly open as loud beeps fill the bus. The driver is the first one out, the passengers yell as they follow after him. I step into the driver's seat and let them pass.

The winds start to pick up as the rain pours harder. Suddenly all three furies let out loud screeches. As they do my group exits the bus with me close behind. We race into the woods as a bolt hits the bus.

Sensing another attack I rush forward and jump high. The bolt hits me so I aim my hands up, towards the sky. Like before I'm able to project the bolt. This time there's resistance. Zeus is giving me everything he's got. The currents are so intense I can feel them splitting my skin. My organs feel like they're going to explode.

The rain stops as warmth hits me. The heat slowly seeps into me. It seems to be undoing all the damage done by the lightning. As it does I feel a new sort of power. It's scolding hot and really bubbly. Closing my eyes I focus on this energy then project it with the electric energy.

The pressure relents then disappears. With one last battle cry I let it all out. I feel so burnt out and empty. It's like I've been beaten with electric batons made of steel. Then dropped into a active volcano. Suddenly my, already ruined, body smashes into the ground. As I slide into the muddy dirt I hear voices calling my name.

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ApPOV

I stand, completely stunned. Father is unconscious in his throne. His face burnt and scarred, as are his hands.

"What just happened?" Artemis asks.

"The boy...h-he used the sun's energy to gain leverage in the battle. H-h-he truly is of my blood." I gasp.

"The child is strong." My twin admits.

"And brilliant." Hera boasts.

"Maybe he is the one the prophecy spoke of." Father groans.

I look at him. His eyes are open and his body is healed but he's still slumped in his seat.

"If that boy is the prophesized demigod then we're all fucked." Dionysus states.


	10. Chapter 10

AnPOV

I follow Cujo to a crater in the dirt. Leaning down I reach out and feel a chest. Feeling beside the chest I find a arm and forearm. Quickly I unfasten his wrist band then reach over and take off the other. Since Cujo has Al's bag I slip the cuffs inside of it small pocket in the front.

The boy looks terrible. His skin is burned to the point where it is black and charred, I think some of his tissue might even be dead. There are also multiple vein like scares that have split and are oozing blood and puss. Reaching up I try to open his eyes but they're welded shut. His ears are melted to the sides of his swollen face. Honestly I can't tell if he's dead or alive.

His cloths are destroyed, yet his black under armor suit is perfectly intact. In fact it looks like it's melded to his skin. Reaching down I lift his sleeve a bit. Oddly enough the skin under the suit isn't as bad as his hands, feet, and face. There is redness with clear blister and vein like scars that are oozing yellow puss. Placing my hand on his chest I feel a faint heartbeat, thank the Gods kinda.

Turning away from him I reach for his bag and pull it into my lap. I open the main compartment then dig inside and find the nectar canteen. Quickly unscrewing the cap I open his mouth and pour some in. He starts to close his mouth and swallow. I repeat this action three times before closing the canteen. His body heals so now his fully healed but his hands, feet, and face look like his body did before I gave him the nectar. Now he looks like he's in pain and he's still unconscious.

I could give him more but it might incinerate him. Unfortunately, at the moment, I don't think I have any other choice. Slowly I give him more till his skin is a little less blistered and his lightning scars aren't pussing. Now he looks a bit more comfortable

"Annabeth! Alcides!" I hear the rest of the group call.

"Over here!" I yell back.

The boys race over to us. They all seem shocked by Al's current state. The rain starts up again with a vengeance. To my dismay it's starting to sizzle off Al's skin. Putting my hand on his forehead I can tell he's got a high fever. Damn I gave him to much nectar. I hope the rain will cool him off.

"Come on we have to keep moving. Luke can you help me with him?" I ask.

The blonde nods then walks over. Together we get him to his feet. I wrap his left arm around my shoulder then place my hand on his right hip. Luke does the same so we can move him. We walk in silence, just wandering aimlessly. Suddenly a shrill toot-toot-toot, like the sound of an owl being tortured, fills the silence.

"Hey, my reed pipes still work! If I could just remember the 'find path' song, we could get out of these woods!" Grover mutters.

He puffs out a few notes, but the tune still sounds suspiciously like Hilary Duff. The Styr keeps playing for a little over a mile. To my glee I start to see lights up ahead. It looks like the colors of a neon sign. I can smell food, causing my stomach to growl.

It all smells so unhealthy. I've never eaten anything unhealthy before. Though I have heard that double cheeseburgers are good. I guess I finally get a chance to try one.

We keep walking until we see a deserted two-lane road through the trees. On the other side is a closed- down gas station, a tattered billboard for a 1990s movie, and one open business. I'm guessing it's the source of the neon light and the good smell.

It isn't a fast-food restaurant like I hoped. It seems to be a weird roadside curio shops that sells lawn flamingos, wooden Indians, cement grizzly bears, and other stuff like that. The main building is a long, low warehouse, surrounded by acres of statuary. The neon sign above the gate is hard for me to read at first. However I'm quickly able to read it once the words are rearranged.

"Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium." Grover says aloud.

"Come on we can probably get some food in there. Hell we could even get a wagon to roll Al in." Luke says.

"Yeah After all he's been through today he deserves it." Percy pipes while rubbing his friends back.

Al lets out a soft groan with a light shutter. Percy chuckles as we cross the street, following the smell of food. The front lot is a forest of statues. All made of cement but not of the same things. Some are animals, some are children, hell there's even a satyr playing the pipes. That gives Grover the creeps.

"Bla-ha-ha!" he bleats as he looks at the satyr statue.

"Looks like my Uncle Ferdinand!" He say nervously.

As we stop at the door Al groans again but a bit louder. His feet are steadier so less of his weight is on us. In fact Luke steps away so I'm the only one holding him up. I must admit it's much easier now that he's on his feet.

"Don't knock, I smell monsters." Grover announces.

"Your nose is clogged up from the Furies." Luke say.

"All I smell is burgers. Aren't you hungry?" Percy adds.

"Meat! I'm a vegetarian." The satyr huffs.

"You eat cheese enchiladas and aluminum cans, " Percy chuckles.

"Those are vegetables. Come on. Let's leave. These statues are...Looking at me."

Suddenly the door creaks open. Revealing a tall woman. She is wearing a long black gown that covers everything but her hands. Her head is completely veiled but eyes glint behind the curtain of black gauze. Unfortunately that is about all I can make out. Her coffee-colored hands look old, but well-manicured and elegant. So I imagine she is a beautiful older lady that takes great care of herself.

Alcides raises his head to see the woman. He grips my shoulder and tries to step back. However his legs start to wobble so he can't move much. Turning I look at the blind boy, who's staring at the woman. His eyes are wide and fearful. Cujo looks at his master then the woman. The pup tilts his head then jumps back with a whimper.

He mutters something under his breath but I can't quite hear him. Behind me I hear the woman invite us in. The boys enter with bright smiles and kind words. When I move to go in Al shakes his head then tries to speak louder.

"That's ok ma'am my friend is sick he needs some air." I lie while stepping back.

She seems put off but closes the door anyway. The boy moves so that he's hugging me. He turns his head so his lips are against my ear.

"Medusa." He whispers gruffly.

"Medusa? What about her?"

He pulls back then points at the shop.

"Medusa. The woman." He tries again.

I look and my eyes widen.

"The woman is Medusa!"

He nods weakly.

"Crud!" I growl.

We make our way back to the door as fast as we can. Grabbing the handle I try to open the door.

"It's locked." I announce.

The boy places his hand on the door. Suddenly I hear a bunch of soft clicks.

"How did you do that?" I ask.

"Metal likes me." He groans.

I open the door slowly then step inside. There's a bench right beside the door so I sit him down.

"I'll be back." I whisper.

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Alcides's POV

As soon as Annabeth walks away Cujo walks over to me. He lifts his head then drops something into my lap. Placing my hand on it I realize that it's my cane.

"Look away from her!" Annabeth shouts.

With a whimper I stand and start tapping my cane. I avoid the mists that indicate statues in search of the hag. To my dismay I find her standing over Percy. Suddenly she looks up at me. My eyes meet her's but nothing happens. The woman is stunned. Taking advantage of her surprise I race forward and pull out my sword. Before she can react I cut her head off. The creature crumbs to her kneed as her head rolls off.

"Yeah! That was for Uncle Ferdinand!" Grover yells behind me.

"Thanks Al." Percy say as he stands.

With a quick nod I walk towards the head. It's looking up at me with hollow black pools. It's weird I can see her wrinkled coffee colored skin. Her thin red lips and sharp white teeth. I can even see the greenish snakes coming out of her head. Yet-

"Al?" Luke questions.

"I can see every single detail in her face, but I can't see her eyes. I couldn't see the fates eyes either." I stammer as I kneel down.

With a shaky hand I close her eyes then pick up the head.

"Percy find a bag that we can put this in. Luke and Grover get bags and fill them with food." I order.

The boys scurry off so I sit on the floor with the head by my side. I still feel weak from earlier. Suddenly there's someone behind me. Turning I see the most breath taking girl I've ever seen. She looks like a stereotypical California girl; you know golden blonde hair, sun kissed skin, and an athletic body. The only thing that throws off the stereotype, and her most captivating feature, are her grey eyes. They're filled with worry and admiration.

"Are you ok?" She asks.

I want to nod but I'm to tired. So I lean into her and close my eyes.

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Annabeth's POV

Al's body goes limp against me and his breath evens out.

"Guys get a wagon, Al passed out again." I yell.

Looking down I brush some stray strands of hair out of his face. This boy is utterly amazing. He is fearless, wise, and powerful. Alcides is a true hero and I called him pathetic. I have to rectify this, make amends for my laps in judgement. After all he's done to protect us, I owe him that.


End file.
